Trouble
by Doppler Effect
Summary: Jack's gotten into all kinds of trouble over the years, but isn't one for sharing his secrets. He likes to deal with things on his own, and never bothers to tell anyone when he may need help. He doesn't get along with other spirits and has always been able to get himself out of trouble. But in three hundred years, bad things are bound to happen every once in a while.
1. First Phase (1)

**First phase (1)**

**Panic**

**Burgess, 1710**

Spring's grip was settling in on the region already. Jack groaned to himself, twirling his staff absently. He had to leave the area _again_? Couldn't it just be winter here all the time? This was his home. He should be able to have whatever season he liked. His gut wrenched unexpectedly and he grimaced. It felt like that whenever he was in a place that wasn't winter. He didn't like it and wanted to move on, but didn't want to be dismissed from his own home in this manner. There shouldn't be any reason why he should be dismissed, really.

This was the third time it had happened now. He would have complained except no one would listen. No one ever did. So he kept to himself and amused others, finding their astonishment and amazement at the frost patterns on the ground and the amount of snowfall a gift in itself. Maybe he had to move on, but they didn't and he would ensure they enjoyed his presence even if they didn't know it was him. It was the closest he was ever going to get to being acknowledged at this rate. He had been trying for three years and no one had even so much as glanced at him.

Oh, whatever. If no one was going to care, he might as well _not_ leave.

-.-.-.-

The first few weeks were fine.

The two weeks after that were uncomfortable.

The two weeks after _that_ were downright dreadful.

Jack groaned, leaning his head back against a tree. With the snow gone, it was much harder to start a snowball fight. Throwing mud at people just wasn't the same. It wasn't funny then – it was humiliating. He stopped doing that after the first day. He couldn't skate around the pond, drawing frost patterns all over it. To warm up one section of the pond was hard if the rest of the area wasn't frozen as well. He didn't know why, but he was hesitant to try and disturb the way it looked like things were supposed to go. Freezing the entire pond seemed to fall in that category.

He had seen some small sprites wandering around his pond. They had taken one look at him and run off, clearly disturbed at having a winter spirit around when he was clearly out of season. He hadn't seen a single seasonal creature after that, but he wasn't sure what to make of the absence of life. If they knew he was here, why wouldn't they come by again to see who he was? Was there something about him that just made them immediately distrust him?

This whole idea had been a bad one. He couldn't stand the heat. There was nothing to do. No one was enjoying anything he did. There was absolutely no point in him being here. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to move on.

And so he did. He left for the south part of New Zealand and enjoyed the cool temperatures there. For a week, he spread snow around and made people enjoy the season. But that uncomfortable month and a half lingered in the back of his mind, as well as the sprites that had been around his pond. Sprites didn't go somewhere that was territory of another. Did they not know it was his? Did other sprites just wander around his pond when he wasn't there? The thought was disturbing.

That was why he found himself back in Burgess just a little while later, staring at the pond. His gut was doing all kinds of interesting things, trying to make him leave. He was undeterred, determined to do something about this. This was where he wanted to live. Even if he wasn't here all the time, it was still his place and he wanted to be able to return to it as he should. Wasn't that fair?

So he froze the pond and he froze the trees. Instead of focusing and using technique to keep the area cool, he made it all freezing cold. It was much more enjoyable this way, wasn't it? He skated and spun through the air, content to be back in his element. The wind wrapped around him, although it seemed more hesitant than usual. He was still getting used to the wind carrying him around. He wasn't sure what to make of it so he simply didn't think about it.

He was sitting in the boughs of one of the trees, looking down at the pond below. Some of his best works of frost were there, he thought. To be honest, though, he always thought that the ones he had just made were his best. He smiled and leaned back, thinking for a moment about what to do next. He opened his eyes and looked down again, preparing to put his new ideas into motion.

A cold gaze met his.

He stopped, pausing as his entire body locked into place. Without even thinking about it, he knew this person was here because he had done something wrong. This person was wrapped in a cloak, head hidden in the grey wool. He seemed innocuous enough, not giving off any sort of feeling or emotion other than age and cold. His hands were hidden in his cloak, but Jack knew they would have a grey tinge to him, just like the rest did. His cowl wasn't tilted up in any way but it seemed like he was staring at Jack all the same. There were eyes looking at him even if he couldn't see them.

Jack dropped down onto the ground despite every instinct he had. This was the first person who had looked at him in _three_ _years_ and he was not about to let a little dread and creepiness get in the way of that. He grinned, trying to push back any tentativeness although he was sure it showed through. "You aren't from Spring," he said cheerfully, leaning against his staff. "I-"

"No, but she is coming for you."

Jack paused, frowning. "Coming for me?"

"You cannot be here, Frost. This is not where you are allowed. Go back to New Zealand. I will not warn you again."

Jack shook his head. "No. I tried, but… This is my home. Why should I leave it when it's mine?"

"Your home it may be. That does not mean you belong here all year round. Do you know who I am?"

Jack paused, thinking about it for a few seconds. "They call you Old Man Winter, don't they?"

"They do. Why do you think I am here?"

"I suppose I'm in trouble for being in Spring's territory."

"Spring is coming to punish you," Old Man Winter said in his dead voice. "Do you know what Spring does to her victims?"

"I really don't want to know," Jack said nervously.

"Do you know why she is coming?"

"Because she is irritated I'm in her zone?"

Old Man Winter remained silent for a few seconds. Jack tilted his head to the side curiously. He started to speak but stopped, breath no longer passing through his throat. His eyes widened in realization and he looked at his elder, not sure why this was happening. Old Man Winter continued to say nothing, even as Jack's legs collapsed beneath him. He didn't speak when the ice from the pond folded in on itself, climbing over to Jack and wrapping itself painfully around him. There was silence in the pond as the ice turned into sharp points and stabbed him repeatedly. No sound could be heard except for thuds as winter sprites, tall and willowy with the strength of the strongest trees, moved forward and hit him with oak branches.

"She is furious because you have broken the law that was set down between the seasons. You have caused her pain and have dishonored us. Do not be so foolish as to do so again. If you should make such a mistake one more time, you will never have pain inflicted upon you by another season. It will always be by my hand. We are not allies. We just happen to both be of Winter breed. Any misfortune you bring upon yourself leads to distrust and a lack of cooperation between the seasons. Your pain is worth avoiding that."

Jack wasn't sure when exactly he left, but he knew that Old Man Winter was gone long before the winter sprites finally finished their work.

-.-.-.-.-

a/n: I'll start by saying I shouldn't be writing this. I'm working on two other stories (Deal Breaker, a Rise of the Guardians and Avengers crossover, and Crosscurrent, a Rise of the Guardians human!AU that is being written and will be flippin' EPIC by the time it's done) and need to finish a third, but this little plot idea has been eating the back of my brain for a while and it has to be written. I usually try to write more than 3k words for each chapter, but these are not being written as I usually would write them so they're going to be at odd lengths. Some will be shorter and some longer. Just about all the phases have a reason for why I'm including them, even if you can't see it yet. It'll all conclude in a finale involving Bunny.

It's going to be written a little oddly and I've never done something like this before, so please let me know how it works out from the reader's perspective. It's going to be done in phases. Each phase is one of the problems he gets himself into and any aftershocks caused by the problem itself or from him trying to fix the problem. (Let's face it. Things are never fixed the first time. I was messing around with a friend and broke a board thing in the couch. Then I learned he lost his wallet and I was pretty sure it was in the couch so I cut open a part of the underside to try and get it out. [TO MY TWIN: What happens and is said on fanfiction. Net, STAYS on fanfiction. net!])

I did not like this chapter but it needed to be written because his relationship with Old Man Winter needs to be understood for this phase. Jack seems childish because he's only been around as a spirit for three years. In the next chapter, two decades will have passed and he'll seem older. But because I don't like this chapter, I'm posting it at the1 same time as the second chapter.


	2. First Phase (2)

**First phase (2)**

**Panic**

**China, 1736**

The Yangtze River was flowing stronger than ever that year. The snow had melted a lot earlier than usual, to Jack's disappointment. He stood on the edge of a paperback maple branch, easily finding a good grip on the flaking bark beneath his feet. The snow around him wasn't sliding off onto the ground below as fast as the rest was, but he could still hear the soft drips of melting water falling or thumps as entire mounds slipped off their resting places. It was beautiful here. The russet color of the bark and the twinkling white from the snow covered everything in sight from his place on the highest tree in the area. It was too bad he was one of the few people who would come outside to see it.

There was a village a few miles away, he knew, but they were usually busy trying to grow food to survive. That was what almost all of the people in this region did unless they were unable to. This particular village had been here with almost the exact same population for as long as Jack had been visiting, which was about twenty years. The horrendous flooding had led to them making a joint effort with other villages downstream to build a dam of tree trunks nearby to stop most of the water from getting through during the flood season. For the last five years, ever since it had been built, the dam had done its job and the villagers had been safe.

He sighed, a heavy emotion in his chest that was a mix between contentment and melancholy, and crouched down with his staff balanced in his lap. However much he wanted to fly across the forest and bring more snow back into the region, he really couldn't. After several decades of life as a winter spirit, he knew what he could and couldn't do, and stopping the turning of the seasons was one of those things he didn't have the power for. The pummeling he had received for trying to do just that had been enough to drive home that lesson without needing to be told it twice.

He had been much more introverted ever since that event a few decades ago, trying to avoid doing anything that would set of Old Man Winter again. He tried to understand that maybe it was better that someone from his own season had gotten to him and not someone whose powers would have done a lot more damage, but it had a more emotional impact too. It was like the difference between getting hit by an older sibling and being bitten by a mountain lion – shouldn't the sibling have been on your side? Ever since then, he hadn't done a single thing to irritate his superior. Messing with someone who could control almost every aspect of his daily life just wasn't a good idea.

The wind rustled through the branches of the maples, a soothing sound that brought him out of his musing. He raised his head from the tree line to look in the direction the wind was blowing. He thought about jumping up and taking off, but there was something about the way the wind was moving that unnerved him. It started off gentle but started blowing stronger than normal. It never did that unless Mother Nature needed something to happen. With an unnerved sense in his stomach, he slowly stood up and moved to the end of the branch.

"Where you off to?" he asked curiously, shaking off any dark emotions in favor of light heartedness. The wind blew just a little stronger with a teasing note to it. _Do you want to come see?_ it appeared to ask.

He grinned and jumped up, letting the wind bring him along on its journey. It seemed to enjoy his company although he wasn't exactly sure why. He knew that there were a few other spirits who would ride the wind, but they were only able to do that because of their own power or because of some ability of theirs. He was the only one who was _carried_ by it, like a child. The thought had annoyed him until he realized that it was probably because he was the only one who actually enjoyed being tossed through the air without needing to know where they were going or just because he liked letting someone else take over for a while. The rest of the spirits were a bunch of control freaks, if you asked him.

The wind dropped him down by the banks of the Yangtze. He padded to a stop, looking around to try and see the reason they were here. Having just been thinking about it, he was unsurprised to see that the banks of the river were flooded and pushing into the forest. "Alright, what's the flooding got to do with you? Isn't this more of a water spirit kind of thing?" Water spirits. He and those things had serious disagreements with each other.

The wind buffeted him forward again and he let it carry him to their next destination. They were going up over the mountain range that the river snaked through. A few mountains passed beneath before the wind started to lower him down again. He skidded to a stop on one of the rocky ledges, arms out to keep his balance as he sent snow flying everywhere. With a laugh, he trotted over to the edge and peeked over. "Nice view. But again, why?"

He hadn't expected the wind to be done trying to show him, and sure enough, it wasn't. It seemed to enjoy having someone who was curious as to what it was doing and who never tired of listening to its vague clues. The wind picked up, not to carry him somewhere but to stir the snow around him. He watched for a few more seconds, raising an eyebrow in confusion, until the snow it had accumulated dropped down again. With a sudden gust, the wind blew all the loosened snow off the mountain's ledge and into the river below. It moved up, wrapping around the peak and starting to knock off small clumps of snow. Jack's face opened up in realization and he nodded. "Oh, you're creating an avalanche!" He glanced down at the river below. "That's sure to flood the dam the villagers have-" He paused, then whirled back around. "Wind, get me down there! The dam is going to burst if you do that!"

The wind, to his amazement, failed to pick him up.

"_Wind_! There are people down there!" It remained silent, as if shaking its head at him. He groaned, rubbing his head in his hands. "Is this what you're supposed to help do? Flood the valley?"

A hint of a breeze wound its way around him before fading. The wind seemed reluctant now in what it had to do and upset at his anxiety. It gave him a nudge away from the direction of the dam. He waved it off but the wind buffeted him again, trying to redirect his attention with a friendly nudge.

"Sorry," he said, pushing against it and going the opposite way. "I know it's your job, but… It's not mine." He ran forward and then jumped off the ledge, falling down into the snow a few feet below. He rolled up to his feet and took off towards the dam even as the wind tried to push him back. It was hard going, but he ducked behind as many rocks and barriers as he could to stop the wind from yanking him off the mountain and away from the river.

It started knocking the first bits of snow off, breaking down the supports that held all the snow up there. So much of it had been melted that the snow was sluggish in moving. The wind grew irritated, trying to shove more and more of it away. The avalanche had to hit the river within the next few minutes or Jack was going to be in the way when the dam burst. Didn't that boy ever listen to anything anyone told him? The wind was tempted to alert Old Man Winter, the only one who seemed to ever be able to put Jack straight, but flinched against the very idea of doing that immediately. Jack would get far more injured from that then he ever would from a flood.

Jack landed on top of the dam a few minutes later. He glanced up at the ledge he had been on just a little earlier, but couldn't see any visible chain reactions starting. That didn't mean he had a whole lot of time, it just meant he had more than five seconds. He planted his staff among the logs, channeling a burst of energy through it. The frost didn't spread as fast as it should have, weak in the warming air. It was only a few degrees above freezing, but that was a few degrees too hot. He groaned and tried it again. He got the same result. There was no way he was going to be able to ice over the entire dam if he couldn't even get the frost to stick.

Giving up on that, he jumped off the dam and started sprinting towards the village. There were a few children playing on the banks of the water, splashing each other and giggling. It was late and their chores were done, allowing them to get away with it. A few parents were trying to call their children in for dinner, but the kids were coming up with every possible reason about why they needed to stay outside. The parents were less than amused, doing everything short of bribing the kids to convince them to come inside. The kids just laughed, pretending to clamber out of the water before tripping and falling in. The smell of food was drifting out from their homes, and it seemed to be the only thing that was getting any response from the kids in terms of getting them to move.

Jack stepped forward and tapped his staff against the water. The water absorbed the cold quickly, freezing over. The kids stopped playing, hearing the unexpected crackle of ice. One of them spotted the patch of ice and pointed. The parents moved forward, pulling their kids out of the water. The children cried out, thinking the sudden ice was pretty neat. The parents shook their heads and said it was a bad omen. Jack stepped onto the water, covering more of it in ice.

"_Get inside!_" one of the parents said in Xi*, pushing his children towards the house. "_Now_!"

"_You must have angered a water spirit!_" another said. "_Hurry!_"

Jack rolled his eyes and groaned. He stepped off the water and onto the ground, throwing up his hands in exasperation. "Do water spirits usually ice stuff over? No, they try and destroy the ice. Pesty little things…" He stopped grumbling to himself as he realized everyone was going inside, not in any of the directions Jack wanted them to go. "No, no, no!" he yelled even though no one could hear him. He ran forward, putting the crook of his staff against one of the walls before the family reached the house. They saw the frost and stopped, changing direction.

"Come on, wind! You can flood the valley, just give me a hand here first!" he called out, running back and forth across the village as he tried to scare the people away from their homes and towards the trees. It wasn't working. "_Please_, help!"

There was a slight hesitation before the wind caved and dropped in, whipping through the homes with a surge of strength. Jack blew a grateful sigh of relief before turning back to the matter, stopping another family with a tap of his staff against the ground. They backed off and went into a neighbor's house before he could stop them. He muttered some choice words under his breath and slammed his staff against the ground, sending a current of ice across everything he could see. The force of it sent him to his knees but did the job, intruding every home and getting everyone's attention.

A mother grabbed up both her children in her arms and ran out of the village. Jack could hear her husband yelling at her to get back inside, but she disappeared into the woods a moment later. The husband ran after her a moment later, realizing she wasn't coming back. Jack grunted and forced another effort into the ice, making it stronger and spreading it farther. He felt overextended and parts of his body were going numb. It was getting harder and harder to send out his power and battle the air around him at the same time. He wasn't going to be able to do this much longer before something inside him snapped. His breath was coming in short gasps and he was getting tunnel vision already. He wasn't experienced enough to be trying to pull something like this off on his own. That didn't mean he couldn't try.

No one moved for a few seconds, staying their homes. The temperature started dropping and children began crying, realizing something was very, very wrong. Another family ran out of their home, following the path of the first one.

Then a second family.

And a third.

Jack breathed out the pent up air he hadn't been realizing he was holding. His grip on his staff slacked as he keeled over to the side, unable to move. The wind tried to curl around him and drag him from the village, but he wasn't conscious enough to allow it. That was a downside of the wind. He had to be awake to give permission for it to carry him, and right now, he couldn't even think straight. His head was buzzing and all he could see were vague shapes. He couldn't release the flow of power to the homes, not until all the families were out. The rest of his energy was being slowly sapped away from him as he hung on, pushing to get the job done.

He gasped in pain as something snapped in his chest.

The flow of power stopped abruptly, no longer able to continue. He reached out, trying to push just a little more. A wave of fierce pain crashed over him and he dropped his staff, curling up into a ball against the hurt. If he had to wager a guess about what had just happened, two bones in his chest had just broken from the exertion and were now rubbing against each other. He dug his fingers into his hair, trying to make the pain stop. With a sudden flash of agony, it did and everything went numb.

The staff was lying by his fingertips. He knew he could get out of here just as soon as he mustered the strength to grab onto it, but he wasn't even sure he could twitch his hand. It was hard to even think about grabbing his staff. Talking to the wind didn't even enter his mind. Off in the distance, he heard a rumbling sound. It registered briefly in his head before he tried to push it aside. It didn't concern him if it didn't make things better or worse.

The rumbling got louder. Dimly, he could hear the rest of the families in the village fleeing as they understood what was happening. A child ran through his legs, unaware that he had just passed through the one who had saved his life by making his family wary to everything that was happening around them.

The rumbling gave way to a crashing noise, almost as loud as the first sound. If Jack had been coherent he would have realized he was hearing the snow fall into the river. As it was, he had forgotten that he was even in danger.

And he was about to pay a very dear price for that.

-.-.-.-

*Xi was the ancient name for the Chinese language Gan. I figured Jack would probably think of an older name for the language than a newer one.


	3. First Phase (3)

** First phase (3)**

**Panic**

**China, 1736**

The dam broke. He stirred at the sound of it, finally realizing he was in danger. The wind was screaming past, doing everything it could to get him out of his stupor. He tried to tell it to get him out of there, but he couldn't calm down enough. His breath was coming in short bursts and every time he tried to say something, all he could do was groan. The wind whipped past him for another moment and Jack closed his eyes, trying to find the strength to just turn over and grab the staff. Why couldn't the wind just grab him whether he gave his permission or not? It seemed like it had just been courtesy for him to ask!

His staff moved a few inches as the wind shoved it around for a few seconds. Why couldn't it do that to him?

"Wind," he called out weakly, the pang in his chest returning as his vocal cords vibrated. "Please…" The wind ignored him, pushing the staff around again. Didn't it realize he was in danger? Didn't it realize he was about to drown? Of course it did. So why wasn't it doing anything about it? Is that what it wanted to happen? No, it had always been with him except when Old Man Winter had dropped by. So why…?

Through half-opened eyes, he watched the staff get flipped over by the wind once more and it dawned on him. His power didn't work if he didn't have his staff. Without his power, he was average. Average people didn't get carried by the wind. He needed his staff. The wind _couldn't_ carry him. In fact, it might not even register he was there.

He reached out with one hand feebly, trying to grab it. The bursting of the dam a mile up the river was coming towards him at a ridiculously slow pace. The wind was probably trying to slow it to give him enough time to get out of there. With any luck, the villagers would take these precious seconds to get as far up the mountains as they could. He reached for the staff again, but he was too dizzy to grasp accurately and his hand went through the air. A groan escaped from his mouth. He was definitely going to have to practice using his powers more often if this is what happened every time he overextended himself. To be _this_ helpless was nothing short of ridiculous.

The wind tore around him one more time, brushing against everything around the staff apologetically. He heard and felt the water approaching, the trembling of the ground increasing as it steadily grew closer. The wind had stopped trying to push it back. After all, Jack wasn't getting any closer to his staff and Mother Nature was probably insisting upon a need for urgency. The people on the mountain couldn't turn around and see the wind forcing back a wave of water. It would cause too much trouble. What was the worth of a little spirit anyway who had done exactly what he had been told not to do?

The rushing of the river grew louder and louder as the water sifted through the cracks of the barrier the wind was still putting up. More got through as the wind slowly raised the defense, letting the water at the bottom of the barrier through. It was enough to significantly raise the water level. Jack listened in growing dread as it got closer and closer. Within minutes, it was lapping at the back of his legs. He tried to grab the staff again, straining to get his muscles to listen to him. His chest creaked with such pain he was forced to stop, more worried about that growing any worse than being swept away by the water's current. The wind was howling through the homes mournfully, having nothing left that it could do but obey Mother Nature. There was no way for the wind to tell her that it was trying to protect someone.

There was a sudden surge of power in the water. He heard the rest of the barrier give away and the water poured out, spilling out into the river and tearing forwards with nothing to stop it. With a cry of pain, he finally forced his body to move by flipping onto his stomach. His arm trapped the staff against the ground. With a sigh of relief, he opened his mouth to yell out to the wind, to tell it that they needed to go _right now_. The wind was there before he could even say anything, starting to drag him out from the water as fast as it could.

Then the wave hit the village homes and walls began crashing down. The roof of the closest home groaned and the wall hit the ground beside him. With no barrier between him and it, the wave easily pushed him away, swallowing him up faster than the wind had been able to grab him. Jack closed his mouth against the water and pinned his staff to his side, unable to do anything against the raging current. His body slammed against several homes as the current tossed him about, further damaging any hope he had of being able to swim to the surface. The staff was almost yanked away, but he used every ounce of strength he had to hold onto it and stop them from being separated.

He was out of the village a few seconds later, being briskly carried away by the water. The ground flew past underneath him, but this wasn't nearly as pleasant as a ride from the wind. This was meant to hurt, meant to destroy. The wind had never tried to do anything but be gentle. He couldn't breathe, couldn't swim, couldn't do anything to fight this. He couldn't tell it to put him down or let him off. To make matters worse, he knew that even if he could get to the surface and get enough air to ask whoever was in charge of the currents to let him go, it would do nothing. He had just tried to postpone the dam breaking open. There was no way they would ever help him now.

Something slammed into his side. Or, more accurately, he slammed into it. He grabbed on, realizing it wasn't moving with the current. The shock of the water was waking him up and he was able to yank himself forward inch by painful inch. His chest was tight from lack of oxygen and from the pain earlier, but the last thing he wanted to do was open his mouth. A sudden current pushed him along and he shot past into whatever lay beyond. He clenched his eyes shut, hating the feeling of being yanked in two different directions at once by the currents.

Then it calmed down.

He hesitated for a moment, feeling his body sway in the water. After a few moments, he began floating down to the bottom of wherever he was. He kicked upwards, strength coming back into him. It took a few more painful, agonizing seconds, but he burst out into the open air a moment later. He gasped for breath for a long minute, trying to get it all back into his lungs. His eyes opened, but he couldn't see anything. The water was carrying him steadily upwards as the water level rose. He sighed, leaning back to float on the water. There wasn't much he could do.

-.-.-.-

Over the next few days, he learned some rather unpleasant things.

One. He was in a cave with no way out.

Two. That cracking feeling in his chest had been the feeling of his power supply snapping. With every passing hour, it was slowly fusing back together. Until such time as it was entirely reformed, though, he was unable to create even the smallest frost pattern. It wasn't like he would be able to see anything anyway in the dark.

Three. The rock walls he was surrounded by were too hard to dig through, meaning he was either going to have to wait for the water levels to go down or for his power to come back so he could get out.

Four. Although his stomach was telling him he did, immortality apparently meant he didn't need food. Other than his stomach rumbling, he didn't suffer from any other effects of hunger. He got thinner for a while, but that stopped after the fourth day. What did that mean about what he was living off of?

Five. He hated water and was surrounded by it.

-.-.-.-

Two weeks after the flood, the water levels dropped enough that he decided to brave them. Even if they weren't low enough, he was pretty sure he was going to go insane if he stayed in there any longer. His power hadn't totally returned, but that just meant he didn't freeze the water as soon as he touched it. He was actually able to drop into it and swim, even though he wanted to do anything but that. With a grimace and the thought that maybe staying in the cave was a better option, he dove into the water with one hand clutching his staff.

It took him a while to find his way back out. He had to try five times until he was able to get out the way he had come in. He knew as soon as he found the right way. The sun was shining through the water, and he swam straight up to it. He broke the surface with a grin, happy as he had ever been before. His laugh pierced the still air, followed by his whoops of joy. The wind stirred, hearing the sound but hesitating. After another whoop, it dove in and snatched him out of the water gleefully. Jack laughed, wanting to hug it but unable.

"Come on, I want to go see Burgess! I want to go to Antarctica, and Russia, and the south of Chile, and-" He continued on, long past the point when the wind had been listening. It was just content to carry him for now, happy to have its passenger back. It knew something of Manny's plans for the boy and wasn't about to let the boy drop from its grasp again. If something happened to that stick one more time, the wind was going to fuse it to Jack's hand so he couldn't ever lose it again. Jack didn't have anyone but the wind, and without his staff, he didn't have the wind either. With any luck, this would be the last time something like this would ever happen.

Now for Jack to deal with the wind's mistake…

It was obvious as soon as Jack stopped talking that something was very wrong. He paused, stopping in midair and turning around, looking at the ground. He knew it should have been spring. His gut was telling him to leave, that this wasn't his sphere of influence anymore. Yet as he looked around, winter still had a very strong grip on the area. Frost was covering almost everything. The riverbanks, flooded as they were, even had tinges of ice along the edges despite how fast the water was flowing. The air would have clouded up if not for the fact that Jack's breath was just as cold.

"What happened?" he said slowly. The wind stopped, moving only enough to keep him in place. "Shouldn't winter have left by now?"

The wind didn't answer. It may have gotten a little worried and overdone it trying to get vengeance on the water spirits while he was gone. Jack didn't need to know that. Besides, it only got worse.

"Come on, let's go to Burgess. I wonder if it's the same."

They took off again, streaking across the sky. Jack wouldn't know for a long time that he was the fastest in the air, moving at a speed that could beat even Toothiana's fairies and North's sleigh. No one else had the wind so totally with them the entire way. As a result, they made it to Burgess within half an hour. Jack dropped down by his pond, surprised to see it still totally iced over.

"What happened…?" he murmured, looking around. "It should _definitely_ be winter, no mistake about it. Should be almost Easter, actually."

His spine tingled and the hair on the back of his neck went up. He froze, scared to even turn around. He knew Old Man Winter's presence far too well now to mistake him for anyone else. After frantically searching his memory for a few moments, he couldn't think of any reason as to why he would be receiving punishment for anything. Above anything, he wanted to avoid another encounter with him.

"Might I start this out by saying it's not my fault?" he said, a lot weaker than he would have liked for it to sound.

"Indeed it is," the soft murmur behind him said. Jack glanced over his shoulder, seeing the grey cowl and imposing figure once more. "Although it was not intentional, it is your fault once more."

"I was in a _cave_ for two weeks! I got out and everything was covered in frost and ice and snow! How is that _my_ fault?!" Jack demanded. He felt he had a right to be angry when he had not even intended to mess with Spring coming in. "Is everything that goes wrong just immediately my fault?"

"We did not have problems from Winter until you came around. We left trouble to Summer."

"Look, just tell me what I did wrong," Jack snapped. "I'll fix it instead of letting your sprites beat the crap out of me again."

"You angered the water sprites-"

"And just because those are Spring's sprites, I immediately get the rod from you?!"

"Those water sprites started a fight with winter sprites in the area you had just tried to stop from flooding. In turn, a small war was started across the entire northern hemisphere," Old Man Winter said. "It is over now. This frost will melt away. However, you were not even here to fight for your own season."

"Uh, because I was in a _cave_."

"That was your own fault."

"I couldn't just let the villagers drown!"

"There are many things you will have to let happen," Old Man Winter said. "The faster you learn that, the easier things will be for you. Dark shadows were appearing in the forest behind him. Jack's heart jumped into his throat, recognizing the winter sprites from last time. He hid the fear behind a mask of anger. It wasn't all that hard to do.

"_I am not your servant_!" he shouted at him. "I won't blindly follow your orders! You're not my master! If something like that _ever_ happens again, you can bet that grey cowl of yours that I will do everything I can to get those people out of there!" His voice echoed out through the woods, startling a flock of birds. He paused, and then as if in afterthought, said, "And you better be ready to come kick my butt if you don't like it, because I'm not going to be waiting around long enough for you to come knocking on my door to politely ask if I would stand there and take your crap!"

A few moments of silence passed. "You reject Winter," he said flatly.

"Winter's fine, it's you I reject! I reject _all_ of you! Every season! If you can just stand there and let the world pass you by without doing anything, I will _never_ work for you!" he yelled.

Something broke.

With a thankful sigh, he realized it wasn't his power like last time. This was something on the outside, something in front of him. Old Man Winter recoiled slightly. Just like that, Jack could stand on his own easier. He wasn't a schoolboy getting told off by the teacher. Old Man Winter wasn't in charge of him anymore. Realizing what had happened, he smiled slightly and let out a surprised laugh.

"You have revoked your title under Winter," the voice from under the cowl said. "Any protection you had from another immortal is gone with that title. You, a mere fledgling, are alone in the world. You are tied to no group and have no shelter of which to hide yourself under. I advise you find someone to hide behind very, very fast. You have a tendency of making people tick." The cold words struck Jack hard, although he clenched his jaw to stop himself from openly showing it. "But always remember that your power is of Winter and should something ever happen to affect the balance of the seasons, you will be forced to fight for it."

"Great. Do you mind?" He waved the man off who had been his demon for twenty years. It felt so good to do.

Old Man Winter shook his head ever so slightly. "You still broke the laws again, Frost."

Jack's eyes widened as the sprites poured out onto the lake. "Wind-!" he started to say, but before he was even through with the word, he was up in the sky and flying away from the sprites below. The last thing he needed was to deal with them again. It felt so much better to be untied like this, to not have to bow to anyone. As the day passed beneath him and the sky got darker, he turned over on his back and looked up. If he thought about it, he could have sworn the moon was smiling. He grinned back before flipping back over.

The wind deposited him on the coast of Argentina. He landed, dancing happily. "I did it, I did it," he sang, not caring that no one could hear him. He didn't even mind that they had gone all the way around the world to try avoiding Old Man Winter when they had only needed to go straight south. They had taken the scenic route. "No more of him, am I right?" he called out with a laugh to the wind. There was no response. "Hey, enjoy the festivities a little!"

The wind blew in his face urgently, shoving him back and turning him around. He frowned and glanced in the direction he was clearly being pushed towards. There was a dark shape coming towards him.

"Oh, great," he muttered under his breath.

"What, ya think that yer havin' a bad day _now_?" the figure asked as it came to a stop and came up from all fours. Jack's eyebrows went up, surprised at how tall the rabbit stood. He wasn't listening to the words nearly as much as he should have been. "Wait 'til I'm through wi' ya, then you'll _really_ feel strung up."

"Look, I just-" Jack said, trying to explain the whole stuck-in-a-cave-for-two-weeks thing once again.

"I _know_ ya froze the entire Northern hemisphere," the rabbit snarled. "Do ya have any idea what day it is?" He continued before Jack even opened his mouth. "Of course ya do. D'ya think I _wouldn't_ come after ya?"

"Actually-"

"Maybe ya just thought ya wouldn't be found out. Ya look awfully new. I'll let ya know that I always find who I'm lookin' for. Even if I didn't know who ya were, ya can bet the Spring sprites did. They complained a whole lot about everythin' ya do."

Great, that meant he was going to disbelieve Jack no matter what he said. The sprites must have really hated him to exaggerate the truth just to send the Easter Bunny after him. "Well, I would offer to help clean up this mess but you look more intent on murdering me, so I think I'll just keep my mouth shut."

The Easter Bunny stepped forward and jabbed a finger at his chest. "If ya ever come outta hidin' on Easter ever again, ya can be sure it'll be the last time ya do anythin' fer a good long while. Someone needs ta teach ya a lesson. Fortunately for ya, I've got a mess ta clean up an' no time ta deal wi' ya."

"Yeah, well-"

"Don't give me tha' look!" the Easter Bunny snapped. "Ya fool, ya coulda hurt someone! They're not expectin' winter ta be hangin' around this late! I don't know if yer stupid or immature or inconsiderate or all a' the above, but-" He continued on for another ten minutes, ranting and raving at Jack, who stood there more out of amusement than anything. Hadn't he just said that he needed to go clean up a mess? He sure didn't know how to manage his time wisely.

"Well, what do you want me to do about it _now_?" Jack asked when the Easter Bunny finally paused for breath.

That set the tone of their relationship for the next three hundred years.

-.-.-.-

a/n: Alright, I said each phase had a reason: This one was called "Panic" because it's a feeling he is now accustomed to but will learn to overcome because of this. It's something he now associates with water (which he now, for obvious reasons, has a fear of). This was also important because it was about how he doesn't have _anyone_ he is really allied with except the wind, since he even disregards Winter now.


	4. Second Phase (1)

**Second phase (1)**

**Antagonistic**

**Russia, 1875**

He crouched on the roof, staff tapping the wall beneath him gently. Sprawls of frost decorated the concrete blocks every time he did so. He was about three stories up, but the height didn't bother him. Russia was an area he knew well, this city in particular. It was far up north enough that he came here multiple times a year to cause some mischief. The city was covered in snow and ice, beautiful to anyone with an artist's eye. Jack didn't, but he thought it looked just fine and felt content about doing his fair share in making it look like that. He had run into the winter sprite who had been delivering the snow, but they had managed to just glare at each other and go separate ways without any confrontation.

Smoke drifted up from below. There were three workers below out on a break, puffing on cigars. The aroma floated up and he recoiled. He hadn't had to deal with that stuff nearly as much a hundred years ago. Now it was all over the place, and it smelled _nasty_. He stood up and stepped away from the edge. They would be done in a few minutes and he could return to his position. For now, he could walk along the edge of the roof and watch below. He was on the lookout for people who had been caught in the foul weather the winter spirit had brought. Too many people saw it as just misery and cold. Maybe he could do something about that.

He could bring snow, too. His was a different kind, the kind that fell as big and intricate snowflakes, the kind that looked like each piece of snow had been thought out individually and carefully crafted. He enjoyed bringing that, spending a few hours making the snowflakes and then asking a favor of the wind. As always, the wind would swirl around his creations and pick them up, carrying them and him with it to the chosen destination. Together, they would spread it around the area with a glee few possessed. Making a work of art was fun but tedious. Showing it to that many people was just plain cool.

Tonight hadn't been one of the days he had felt like spreading it, though. He had felt that Winter was spreading around some huge snow storms of its own and he thought he might as well spread around some joy instead. These people had had enough pain and trouble as it was.

This was a good place to try and make people laugh from. It was the business section of town, but that meant he could encourage anyone on their way home. Dumping a pile of snow on them after adding a mix of fun to it almost always did the trick. This work site would probably be letting out its workers soon.

The smoke smell was even more distinct now. Jack wrinkled his nose, looking back in the direction it was coming from. What were they _doing_? He went back and peeked over the edge.

Someone had tapped their ash out on the ground while it was still smoking. The fire had caught onto the door, which was in flames by now, and had started on the inside. It was quickly spreading, aided by the wind blowing it further inside. Jack sent out a silent plea for it to stop doing that, but it didn't respond.

He followed the source of the breeze with his eyes and realized it wasn't the wind at all. It was just a current of air being pushed that way by a sprite standing at the corner of the building. The sprite looked up and their eyes met. It was the one who had been carrying the storm here. The sprite smirked, mock-saluted him, and then walked away. Jack started to follow him but stopped. There would be another chance to do that, but the building was on fire _now_ and there were people inside.

He dropped down beside a window and used his staff to break in. It was easy to see what was happening, because most of the building was just empty space with a single walkway on each level. There was already a flurry from below as people realized what was going on and tried to get out. The fire was growing quickly, thanks to the winter sprite's help and the fact that this building had flimsy wood pallets all over the place. Several exits had already been blocked off and people were flooding to the higher portions of the building, where the smoke was rising and making it harder to breathe. People were shouting orders, doing all kinds of things to get out of the building. Someone broke a window on the second floor and jumped out, followed by several of others.

Jack stepped in and frowned as a flash of white sprinted across the other side of the building. The stupid sprite was running around, doing absolutely everything he could to block exits. Walls were covered in flames or parts of the ceiling caved in to trap people. The Russians didn't panic nearly as much as Jack would have expected them to, grabbing all sorts of things to combat the rapidly spreading flames. They grabbed buckets of water and poured it over doors to keep the fire back long enough to let someone out, or helped each other out the windows. Later, when they gave a report about what had happened, people would surely say that someone had purposefully lit the building on fire because there was no way it could have covered so much area so fast.

After a moment spared to take stock of what was going on, Jack entered the fray, blowing the wind in on the flames and bringing snow to blanket some of the fire. The wind made the flames spread a bit, but the snow melted and put it out. His effect was subtle enough that no one, especially in all this chaos, would notice, but it was enough to help. He opened up one window on the second floor to escape and the workers climbed out. That drop certainly wouldn't kill them unless they landed on their head, and they were probably wise enough not to land on their backs.

A hand grabbed onto his staff as he tried to freeze part of another window. He barely had time to turn his head before the tall, willowy winter sprite tightened his grip on the staff and hurled Jack into a wall. He grunted, caught off guard. Before he could do anything, the sprite turned on his heel and slammed him against the wall with the staff as a fulcrum. Jack refused to let go, not sure what would happen if he did, especially in this heat. He could feel the wind starting to come in through the window, sensing his distress. The winter sprite did too and realized he didn't have much time left. He yanked the staff and Jack closer, then kicked out, foot slamming into Jack's side. Jack was thrown back and the staff stayed in the winter sprite's hand.

He groaned, sitting up. He was just in time to see the staff disappear into the chaos of one of the lower levels and the winter sprite fly off.

Today sucked.

His chest gave off a burning feeling. He guessed it was from the heat the staff was going through. There wasn't anything he could do for these people if he couldn't channel his powers, so he took off running after the staff. Multiple people ran through him, but he pushed through and paid as little attention to them as he could. He had to climb down multiple sets of stairs, ignoring the steps and just dropping from railing to railing. By the time he hit the ground, almost everything was obscured in smoke and visibility was extremely low. The heat would have been hardly bearable for any mortal, but he was nearly brought to his knees by it. Winter and heat just didn't work like this. The winter sprite must have had a serious grudge against him to do this, especially since it must have known what this would have done to Jack.

He moved forward, his limbs slow and weighed down by the oppressive heat. This really wasn't something he was made to do. There just wasn't anything he could do against it, especially not without his staff. There was a reason one didn't seen fire and frost together very often. Jack wasn't sure if he could die, but extreme heat just might do the trick.

His vision started to go dark. He barely felt himself hit the floor.

-.-.-.-

His world was moving around him, as if he were in a rocking chair. Everything was smooth and peaceful. Something was ruffling his hair gently, like someone was running their hands through it. Nothing was touching him, though. He was suspended in the air. One of his arms was weighted down by something, but it wasn't too heavy. His body was limp and he felt tired. He wanted to go back to sleep.

Everything was cold, blissfully so. The light wasn't too blinding, as it would have been if the sun were right overhead, but it wasn't night either. He didn't open his eyes, not caring enough to know what time it was. He just wanted to rest for now. Was that too much to ask? It wasn't like anyone was expecting him…

-.-.-.-

He woke up fully three days later.

He turned over on his side and looked around. The wind had apparently been carrying him this entire time. His staff was in his hand, his fingers just holding onto it. Even as he watched, the wind wrapped around his hand, closing it around the staff to make sure it didn't fall out. It was a sorry sight, seeing the staff. It had scorch marks all over it. His clothes didn't look much better. They had already been tattered and worn, but the fire had made them even rougher.

Jack stared at the glaciers below for a moment, content to just watch them as he thought back to what had happened. His entire body ached from the extreme heat and pressure it had been put under. Somehow, he had managed to find the staff in the heat. He must have asked the wind to take him out of there, although he didn't remember it. In fact, he didn't really remember anything from that night since he went into the building except for vague shapes. It was something he'd rather forget about anyway. The winter sprite might come after him, but until that happened, he would just avoid any more that came across his path.

Jack sighed and stretched out. "Woah, that was not a good rest. Thanks for carrying me. It would've been a lot worse." The wind became a tad cooler, recognizing he was awake. "Sorry if I was a bother." The wind ruffled his hair kindly in response. "Okay, I need to fix this up now," he said, looking over his staff. "Those scorch marks don't look too good… Think that'll work?" A current wrapped around his midsection for a brief moment. "Right. It'll work. It'll work… It probably won't." The wind smacked him lightly in the head. "I didn't say I won't _try_, but the power comes from the staff. How am I supposed to do something about that?" There was a light pressure on his hands.

He sighed, bringing his staff up in front of him. "Okay, okay." He frowned, concentrating on the wood. After a moment, he stopped, looking down. "Hey, could you set me on the ground? It's kinda hard when I don't have my feet on something sturdy. I mean, I trust you and everything, it's just…" He trailed off, knowing the wind understood.

But for the first time in almost a hundred and fifty years, the wind didn't do as he asked.

Jack chuckled slightly. "Aw, worried about me? Come on, I promise I won't get attacked as soon as you set me down." The wind tightened around him. If he hadn't been positive that the wind didn't care for anyone and just found him amusing, he would have been sure that the wind lifted him higher to keep him away from the ground.

Jack smiled and folded his feet under him. He was moving slowly across the sky inside a clump of cumulus clouds. It meant he was protected from view and that no one would be able to find him unless they were knew where to look. This probably was one of the safest place he could try and fix his staff at the moment. With that thought in mind, he focused back on his staff.

Maybe the wind thought he could mend it, but he wasn't sure how. It was wood, but there was something special about it. He rubbed the black soot off the edges of it, cleaning away most of the damage. There wasn't much of it missing, but it still hurt. He probably wouldn't be able to use it to the degree he had been able to before if he wasn't able to mend it. Even now, there wasn't much frost spreading out from his fingers.

The deepest burn had left an open gash for Jack to peer into the center of the staff through. As he had thought, there were small white streaks running through it like veins. It was almost unnoticeable. The only reason he noticed was because it was inches away from his face and he was staring right at them. They were interlocked with the original wood, making a stronger bond. It was probably why the staff had held up for so long. Jack lowered his hands to adjust his grip, moving them farther from the place he was staring at. To his astonishment, the white streaks nearly disappeared, becoming so faint that he could see through them.

Jack paused, thinking for a moment. If the power came from him, then the white streaks were probably ice that seeped into the wood. He was in control of them. He focused for a moment, gathering power to shoot an experimental bolt of ice into the air. As he did so, he watched the white veins become bolder and stronger, pulsing with energy. The ice shot out, arcing through the air. His excitement over learning how his staff worked overruled his disappointment about how weak the ice had been.

The test had certainly shown him some things. If his power traveled through the staff, then it must have been acting like a heart. He was the center of the circulatory system and the streaks were vein-like in more than just appearance. The ice moved through them and gathered in the staff until he wanted to let it loose. The reason his power was so weak right now was because some of it was leaking out through the open scars like blood oozed out of a scratch instead of getting to its destination.

That meant the veins needed to clot up. The wood was like skin. It needed to grow back and cover the open wounds. Jack frowned in concentration. His eyes glanced over the wood, taking in every spot that was open. The white streaks grew brighter, sparks of frost flying out of them as the power gathered. He held it tighter, grinning as the wood mended itself and frost spread out around his hand. It worked!

He laughed aloud, holding his staff out. "You were right, wind! I owe you for this!" The wind seemed to laugh in return, twirling him around. He grinned, letting it carry him off to wherever it wanted to go. "I never even thought I might be the source of the power!"

He danced around in the skies, all too content to just be carried. A content smile covered his face. The fire didn't seem as horrible now. He sighed, happy, and looked down below.

"Hey, wind, let's go spread some snow!"

Flurries of snow came down from the clouds a few moments later. Jack started to follow them, but the wind stopped him a mile up. He looked around in confusion as the snow dropped onto the town. "Hey, it's no fun unless I can help!"

This time, he was sure he rose higher instead of going lower.

"Wind?"

There was no reply. Jack's nervous smile fell and he started to get worried.

"Okay, seriously, you can put me down now."

Nothing.

"Put me down."

The wind barely stirred around him, only doing what was necessary to keep him in the air, remaining silent as it waited for him to figure things out.

"I'm not joking! Put me down!"

Still no response.

"_Wind_!" he yelled, a cold stone settling in his stomach. "_Put me down!_"

-.-.-.-

a/n: I could not write this chapter. I swear, it was terrible. I tried four or five times, so you get _this_ piece of shit. Sat down so many times to write it and it just…didn't happen. I was only expecting it to be one chapter long, but apparently there's going to be a second part. Surprise!

I'd like to know what you think is going on with the wind at the end, if you want to share your idea. I know, but do you?


	5. Second Phase (2)

**Second phase (2)**

**Antagonistic**

**Iceland, 1874**

Jack looked down mournfully as Hafnarfjordur passed by underneath. He had grown quieter this last week. The wind felt guilty about it, often taking him on wild trips through mountains or across towns. It never let him lower than a hundred meters, fearful that he would snag something to stop the wind from carrying him any farther. There were worse types of confinement, especially for a winter spirit like Jack. This wasn't a punishment. The wind knew that the fire and losing his staff hadn't been Jack's fault. No, it had been a winter sprite's fault. If Old Man Winter was involved, he might try and send someone else after Jack.

Up here, Jack was safe from harm.

He wouldn't nearly drown trying to save a village from a flood. He couldn't be hunted down by his own kind. No one would be able to find him again to cause him harm, no matter how much they despised him.

Safe.

The wind hadn't considered that almost everything Jack thought was fun was also _dangerous_, a word that was the exact opposite of _safe_.

The winter child absolutely despised this. He loved the wind and the ability to fly around the world, seeing places that no mortal had yet been able to venture to and able to have adventures that others could only dream about. All the same, being stuck like this was something he couldn't handle. Any kind of restraint was hard on the child. It wasn't in his nature. He was supposed to be as wild and free as any force of nature, like the wind itself.

However, he was a _child_. There was no adult here to teach him how things were. That meant the wind had to do it. If no one else would, the wind would put the task to itself to keep him safe. There was no way to talk to him other than to make vague gestures and hope he could figure it out. The wind would just have to hope that Jack would eventually learn that this was for his own good. After a hundred and fifty years of keeping the child reasonably protected and taking him around the world, the wind had felt more like a guardian than an old friend.

It could be that Jack would never learn that he had to stay safe. The only way the wind would know that he had learned his lesson was if Jack told it that he understood. That could take a while, seeing as Jack would have to first learn why he was suspended in the air in the first place. He had given up guessing, having never gotten anywhere close. Maybe one day he would learn. Maybe one day he would realize he had to look both ways before crossing the street. It might be more fun to just dodge out into the road and take things as they came, but one day, the vehicle would be faster than him.

Not the perfect metaphor, but the wind wasn't really one for literature.

The moon was out. Jack rolled over onto his back. The wind cradled him, by now entirely used to his every movement. It knew almost before Jack when he was going to change position. It would read the situation and accommodate accordingly. Jack stared up at the white orb in the sky, arms folded behind his head.

"Hey, Manny… Look, I'm not expecting you to talk to me tonight. I wish you would, but… y'know, whatever. I've got a problem." The wind cringed slightly. It hadn't considered this. "You see," Jack said, knowing the wind just as well as it knew him and feeling the slight mood change, "the wind here is not cooperating."

The wind, having known the Man in the Moon for a much longer time than Jack, recognized the faint shift in Manny's moonbeams. They were bemused, coming closer out of curiosity.

"I haven't set food on the ground for a week now and it's getting really boring. It's not listening to me. Can you do something about this? It refuses to take me anywhere near where another spirit or sprite who could do something about it might be." Now the wind was going to have to keep him in the sun at all times, too. "I know… Well, I _hope_… I _think_ you put me here for a reason. I don't think that reason involves me hanging around the sky all day and not being able to do anything."

The wind sighed, rocking Jack slightly. Of course he had gotten the Man in the Moon involved. Things were going to get interesting. It pushed Jack along, not upset at the child. He hadn't known that this could get the wind in some serious trouble if anyone knew.

_The child needs to be put down. _The moonbeams carried the message and waited for a reply. The wind set its metaphorical jaw and crossed its metaphorical arms.

[You have forsaken him.] No actual words were exchanged, but the point of the message was delivered all the same. Jack was going to sleep, having nothing else to do. The wind obviously wasn't going to be playing tonight. He could feel it. [By doing so, you forsake the right to control him.]

Manny sighed. _I have not forsaken him. His time has not come. He is right. I created him for a reason. _

[Just because the time has not come does not mean you have the right to turn a child away and abandon him in the cold! He died in the ice, alone. Why should he stay cold and alone forever more?]

_Not forever more. His time will come, I promise. It is just not now_.

[When will his time come? I do not know how much longer he can handle this. He is an immortal teenager, forever stuck in a mindset in which he needs attention and guidance. He will never outgrow that. You have abandoned your child.]

_I have not abandoned_-

[You have! He is of no one else's creation but yours, so he is your child. He is uncared for, so he is abandoned. I alone protect him and keep him safe. What right do you have to decide how I care for him when you have done so little?]

_I do not have the heart to tell him that he may have to wait twenty years for his reason to be, but he may also have to wait twenty decades for his reason to be. Say what you will of that, but it is not something I have the heart to do. He keeps faith this way._

[He does not! He believes he has failed, that he will never succeed! What is it of him that you wish? I cannot tell him. Why should I not know? I, who has always been there for him?]

_One day he will protect many. He will guard them with his life and he will be entirely willing to sacrifice anything to keep them safe. There will be people who will always be there for him, and he will always be there for them. The ones he protects, however, may never know he exists. If they should happen to realize he does, they will eventually forget he did. It will not be easy. He has to know how to care for himself and be safe, with or without your help. You are kind, but one day, that will not be enough._

[One day.]

_Yes._

[One day is not now. He is still learning about consequences. He must know what may happen should he do something dangerous. I have to teach him this, otherwise he may not ever survive until your "one day". Allow me to protect this child. Allow me to teach him.]

_Allow you?_

[The child, to my disgust, is yours no matter what I may wish. Even if I do not believe you have the right to try and guide him with your limited knowledge of who he is, Mother Nature will side with you. I must have your permission.]

_I wish for you to continue caring for him. However, this is not the way to show him he has done something wrong. You must allow him to choose his own path instead of carrying him to where you think he should go. Jack Frost is many things, important in so many ways, and strong enough to stand on his own. He must realize this. Allow him to. _

[He will in good time. He seems to have enough of that on his hands. I will not let any harm come to him. Until I am sure the Winter King no long seeks to harm him, I will not put him on the ground. This is the last time Old Man Winter will order someone to lay a hand on him. It is with him you should be arguing, not me.]

The moonbeams pulled away as a cloud passed between the moon and Jack. By the time the cloud was gone, the communication had been severed. That would be all for the negotiations that night.

-.-.-.-

The Man in the Moon returned three weeks later. Jack had become entirely silent, almost never responding to the wind's playful jibes anymore. It dumped a cloud full of snow on him, hoping to give the child some cheer. Jack barely reacted other than to look up at it and tilt his head. There was no hint of a playful smile. He looked back down a moment later with a blank expression.

The wind was upset by this change in attitude. It did not know a whole lot of emotions. It could be angry and devastating or peaceful and gentle, gleeful and adventurous or quiet and melancholy. Poets said the wind screamed and moaned, but they never once said the wind cried. It did not know sadness. It could not understand that. How could it? Why would the wind ever need to mourn? There was no one for it grieve for.

Not until its deceased ward finally turned cold and empty, like he should have been the entire time. Never, until that time, had it ever needed to mourn.

There was no way to wake him up. The wind tried everything, dropping and catching him, rocking him to sleep, sending him on adventures across the world, trying to play games with him, sending snow to every town it could… Jack remained blank, barely reacting to anything around him. This wasn't his nature. Why wasn't he smiling? Why didn't he laugh? The wind picked up a stone and jabbed him in the ribs. Jack barely flinched.

The wind screamed. It had done everything Jack wanted to do. Why wouldn't he wake up? This wasn't like him at all! Even if he was trapped, the wind knew Jack would make a game of it to keep himself entertained. What was wrong?

The wind couldn't mourn the loss of its child. In its arms, all it carried now was a deadweight, a body that barely moved or did anything for itself. This wasn't the wind's fault. It had just been trying to teach him a lesson. The result hadn't been intentional. That wasn't what was supposed to happen at all.

It screamed again, but this time it took its rage out on something other than the empty air. Keeping Jack in the sky, it dove down into an Icelandic village and shoved against people and objects. Windows rattled and dogs barked. The wind roared again, another burst of energy pushing against the walls of the town. People shuddered against the cold air and went inside. Children stopped playing, huddling behind structures to hide from the force of nature. Their troubles gave the wind no satisfaction, but the act of destruction helped it vent.

A flash of anger crossed Jack's face.

The wind stopped suddenly, pausing. If it had known what the gesture meant and had the body parts necessary to do so, it would have slapped its palm against its face.

Of course. Jack, tired of waiting on Manny, had been faking it in an attempt to get the wind to put him down. He was totally fine.

So the wind dropped him.

Jack was fine for the first few seconds, until he realized the wind wasn't going to be catching him anytime soon. He shot a glance to the ground, which was beginning to get rather close. This wasn't exactly what he had meant when he had yelled at it to put him down. The wind knew that, but was too busy watching his expression start to get more and more fearful to do anything besides smirk smugly to itself. Stupid child.

A few hundred meters above the ground, the wind finally scooped in and caught Jack, cradling him in its currents. Jack groaned, annoyed at himself for breaking his own cover and at the wind for pulling such a stunt. "Why can't you just let me go?" he complained. To the wind's surprise, there was one thing that Jack hadn't done in a typical teenager fashion. He hadn't gotten angry at the wind. He seemed to understand that there was something he didn't know that was causing the wind to not set him down. He was just frustrated that he didn't know what that something was.

The sun began to set. The wind carried Jack higher, where it was cold. Maybe it could take him to places he normally wouldn't see if they were high enough. Jack might enjoy that. He needed a break from acting dead, after all.

_Wind,_ a moonbeam said gently to get its attention. The wind let Jack drift from current to current of his own accord, listening to the moonbeam. However, like any parent talking to someone else, it kept an eye on its child on the playground. Since the talk a few weeks ago, the Man in the Moon hadn't tried to talk to the wind. This was a surprise.

[I hope you will not attempt to make the same offer.]

_I spoke to Old Man Winter. Mother Nature helped me talk to him and discuss the terms. _

The wind paused for a moment. It hadn't been entirely sure whether Manny would do that or not. It was a good thing he had decided to. [What did he say?]

The Man in the Moon paused.

[Jack will not learn his lesson. He does not know what is wrong. I doubt he will ever be safe. It is against his nature. His freedom on the ground hinges entirely on what you and Old Man Winter decided.]

_Old Man Winter has agreed to never send an agent against Jack Frost for solely vindictive reasons. Jack is safe from random acts of aggression. Winter will only attack if Jack does something to aggravate them. That is fair enough. Jack will not do anything to even get their attention right now. _

The wind sighed. [As fair as it will get. You are sure they will not find a loophole?]

_Mother Nature and I made sure of it._

The wind settled for a moment, thinking.

Jack glanced down as he started losing altitude. He looked down in surprise. A grin spread across his face and he laughed, diving down to reach towards the ground. The wind and the Man in the Moon watched on as he danced across the top of the village, feet dancing across the roofs and frost spreading everywhere he touched. The two of them may not have agreed on everything, but the safety of one child was something they both valued.

-.-.-.-

a/n: Okay, so this POS was admittedly written mostly for something later and so I could laugh at the consequences caused by it being caught on fire. (I mean, really, the wind being overprotective and not putting him down for a month? *snigger*) However, it was also to show why he's antagonistic about people trying to help him – thanks, wind, really helped out here – and to show why he gets so irritated at other people so easily since that sprite was just an ass. Plus, it was to show that burning the staff causes a bunch of problems.

I'm curious as to who reads author notes. Say "Yuletide goat tripping hay stacks with polka dots" or something if you do.


	6. Third Phase (1)

**Third phase (1)**

**Vagabond**

**Scotland, 1914**

Jack enjoyed making it snow in this area. It was always so green beforehand, and there was always a farmer who would wake up to a foot of snow and make it his duty to walk outside and swear at the snow. His kids would run out past him excitedly and into the white landscape to pummel each other with snow balls. He had dropped the first batch of snow and only had to wait for forty-five minutes before the first farmer came out to scream at the sky. The swears were yelled in an almost undecipherable brogue. He laughed, silently asking the wind to blow an extra gust of snow in his face just for the heck of it.

He kept flying, crossing the country multiple times and watching the storm front repeatedly douse the country in snow. He took a tally on how many farmers he irritated, too. The tally was up to sixty-one when he noticed the green hats making their way through the storm. He had heard of leprechauns before but had never seen any. The wind sensed his curiosity and dropped him closer, letting him get a better look from the sky without them seeing him. They had empty brown sacks over their shoulders, probably off to go cause trouble. The snow was giving them trouble but they trudged through, grumbling and not bothering to look up.

Jack looked back in the direction they had come. He knew there were supposedly pots of gold at the end of rainbows, but that wasn't something he particularly cared about. Leprechauns were troublemakers who would irritate nearby farmers to keep them from looking for their gold. They had been around a long time, longer than Jack. If they were always off causing trouble and no one gave them grief for it, then why couldn't he give _them_ trouble for a change?

He smirked, the idea sticking in his head as he started moving. The wind carried him along the path of the footprints, in the opposite direction from where the leprechauns were headed. He probably had a while to mess around with things before the leprechauns came home and stopped him. It only took him a few minutes to fly across the Scottish fields until the tracks ended by the bottom of a hill. Jack dropped down to the ground and moved closer to where the footprints led out from. Some scraggly brush blocked his way, but he pulled it aside. There was a pot of gold sitting on top of the tunnel, to his annoyance, and he had to move the huge thing before he could get inside.

The dirt tunnel was small and wasn't tall enough for him to walk through. He had to get down on his hands and knees and crawl, staff in one hand despite the awkwardness of it. That was one thing he was definitely not going to leave outside. The tunnel started to dip down. He formed an ice path in front of him and swung his legs around in front, pushing off to slide down. The tunnel whizzed past, taking turns and dips before shooting him out into the center of the hill. He wasn't able to stop fast enough and his clothing caught on the floor, sending him tumbling into a table. It hit the floor, narrowly avoiding his head.

He sat up with a groan and rested his elbows on his knees as he looked around the room. It was small since the leprechauns didn't need that much space, and there were only five rooms that he could see. He was in one that looked like it was for making scientific experiments. To the left was a room for eating, and beyond that one for sleeping. To the right was a room for storing things that had obviously been stolen connected to a room that was practically buried in gold. Why were the leprechauns so annoyed when people found their gold if they had so much to spare? Greedy little buggers. The entire house was exceptionally clean, despite the fact that it was underground and the walls and floor were all made of dirt. Each room was circular and the floor and ceiling were just melded with the walls instead of their being a distinct line between the two.

Jack got to his feet and brushed himself off. The wind was interested in what he was doing, curling around the room and watching him. Sometimes he wondered if he was one of the only people who could see what it was doing. Not a whole lot of people ever spoke to it or paid it any heed, even though it played such a large role in everyday life. He shrugged it off and went back to what he had been doing.

The earthen walls froze as he walked along, peeking into each of the rooms to be better inspect them. After a moment, he grinned and began jumping around between the pieces of furniture, ducking his head to not accidentally slam it into the ceiling. He ran along, staff touching various things to freeze them over. There was a cauldron in the kitchen and several jars that he froze. It was going to take a while for them to get those warmed back up again, he thought with a grin. He put a layer of ice over everything, causing surfaces to be more slippery and securing things to the table or floor. The room full of gold was fun. He knocked over the stacks and piled it weirdly. The leprechauns were probably going to freak out until they realized everything was still accounted for.

The entire home under the hill had been completely covered in frost and ice by the time he was done. He grinned, hefting his staff in his hand, before padding over to the tunnel and starting to climb back up. The wind gave him a boost and he was flying through it the next moment, grinning and laughing as he went. He didn't think he had been down there long, but it was either that or the leprechauns had gotten back way sooner than he had thought they would. All of them were staring at him as he popped out and hovered in the morning air, the wind curling around him protectively. He smiled and waved, not sure what the protocol for a meeting like this was.

Finally, the closest leprechaun got his bearings. "Who are you and what did you do?" it said, Irish accent heavy despite the fact they were not on the Emerald Isle.

Jack shrugged. "I'm Jack Frost and you'll figure it out once you get down there." The wind carried him off before the leprechauns could get another retort in. Jack laughed, spinning through the air for a moment in excitement. He'd never met those kinds of creatures before. He still hadn't, not really, but pranking them was so much more fun anyway.

-.-.-.-

Home for right now was a small building a few miles away from Burgess. He had spent almost two hundred years at the pond, but it had gotten lonely and he wanted to be around people, even if they couldn't see him. Living in someone else's home and been an idea he had thrown out after testing it for five days, since he realized it was rather creepy and he felt like he was intruding on something incredibly private. This was his second attempt at finding a different home. It was two stories tall and filled with rooms and rooms of kids. Jack had come across it once while dumping snow on the town and realized it was a foster home for boys. He had made sure to give them as much snow as he could, to their utter delight, but hadn't otherwise really thought about it much until he had decided to stay somewhere.

Now he lived amongst the other parentless children, ones who had been abandoned or who had no living family to speak of. Some of them were constantly angry at the world and Jack spent a lot of his time home trying to brighten their days. A few of them had let go of their frustration, and more of them were getting close to doing the same. The rest of the kids were almost always cheerful and laughing, either having learned how to put on a mask or having just truly moved past their emotions. It was a good place to try and make a difference, even if no one knew he was trying. He'd been there for a few months now, long enough to see some kids who had been on the Naughty List for years finally get presents after they had begun to liven up. It was nice, knowing that he was part of the reason why they did.

He found an empty room and set his staff down in it. It was the middle of the day and a lot of the kids were awake and running around. Jack watched them for a few minutes, occasionally encouraging them to go outside and have fun in the snow. Once he had managed to empty the entire building of the kids and he could see them throwing snowballs at each other through the window, he finally allowed himself to go back into the empty room and drop down onto the bed. He folded his arms behind his head and stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes before closing his eyes and letting himself drift off to sleep.

-.-.-

He woke up to cries of disappointment. The sounds startled him and he sat up immediately, frowning as he wondered what the problem was. He opened the door and looked out, then blinked in stunned surprise.

All the food in storage had been flung randomly across the halls. Furniture had been upturned and used as a barricade to block off one of the end hall. The other side was a dead end, effectively trapping all the boys in this hall. Jack sighed, rubbing his head with his staff. It was too impressive to have been done by some random hooligans. The kids and Jack would have been woken up the loud sounds of everything be moved around. It looked like the leprechauns had gotten their revenge.

"Hey!" John, one of the older boys, yelled. He pounded on a table. "Can you hear us on the other side?"

"Loud and clear!" Connor shouted back. They couldn't even see him through the barricade. "We think we might be able to get you down through the window. Mr. Barris is going to bring over his ladder to get you."

"Stand back, I want to try and push some of this stuff over," John yelled. There was a scuffling from the other side as they obliged. The boys on Jack's side began climbing to the top of the barricade and pushing items over. Jack helped, pushing things aside when they weren't looking anywhere near him. Cleaning up the food all over the walls was going to take a lot longer.

By the time Mr. Barris came had gotten the ladder up, they had already managed to get a small hole large enough for the younger kids to get through. The ones left climbed down the ladder. Jack stayed where he was, icing the food on the walls and then breaking off the clumps using his staff. He could make it easier for them to clean up at the very least. Once he was done with as much as he could get done without someone freaking out about how much had been cleaned without anyone doing anything, he started loosening up the barricade to make it easier for them to take it apart.

The kids were already helping from the other side, pulling down everything that had been put up. Some adults who lived nearby were also there, but they were helping on the lower floors. Jack did as much as he could to help, but there was only so much he could do without freaking anyone out. By the afternoon, most of the barricades had been taken down and dismantled, and the food was being scrubbed off. The major concern was about the lack of food they now had, but it seemed like a lot of the neighbors were going to pitch in as best as they could.

The next day wasn't any better. Jack woke up to found the place trashed once more. It was just as bad as last time, although there wasn't as much food because they hadn't yet had time to restock the kitchen. Jack caused the largest snowball fight in town that anyone had ever seen, getting all the kids from the orphanage involved and all of the neighbors who were helping. That was the last time he ever stayed there. He couldn't get these kids involved in his mess.

His next residence was in an old abandoned house a few miles east of the pond. It was horribly trashed the first night and burned down before he even made it home the second night.

The third place he stayed lasted just a few hours longer, when Jack woke up in the back of a store to see the leprechauns painting over every surface with bright colors. Jack chased them out but didn't return to the store again.

It continued until Jack no longer stayed anywhere, drifting from place to place and not staying long enough for the leprechauns to do anything. The only times they didn't harass him was when he stayed outside and away from anyone else. It was when he was in some of the most secluded places without any sense of belonging somewhere that he was actually able to sleep without being harassed by leprechauns.

Man, they really knew how to hold a grudge.

-.-.-.-

a/n: This one is called Vagabond because that is, essentially, what he has become. You can assume that just about any temporary home he uses soon as something horrible done to it. A little bit of fun for him turned out to be a huge problem later.

Thanks to all fifteen people who read the a/n's.


	7. Interlude

**Interlude (1)**

**Frontage**

**North Pole, Present Day**

North had his arms crossed over his chest. Jack's staff was leaning against the wall behind the Russian, just a little too far for him to get to. This had become an almost daily routine for North to lecture Jack. Now, as he continued on with his rant, Jack tuned him out once more. He'd heard this for the last fifteen days and didn't see the reason for why he should hear it again.

The snow was drifting gently by outside. The wind would occasionally blow large gusts of it against the side of the workshop, irritated at North for not letting Jack come out and play. Jack had pointed this out once, saying the wind would probably give North trouble next Christmas. North had waved it off, saying it was worth it if it would teach Jack a lesson. Jack kept his mouth shut about just how many others had said that, not wanting to even think about the different incidents and not sure if it would even have an effect.

Jack was tired of the same spiel, even though he understood why he was getting it. Old Man Winter had been even more irritable as of late ever since Jack had become a Guardian. He suspected the cloaked man realized that it had been Manny's intention all along of creating Jack to be a Guardian, and he was now feeling angered that he had been tricked into believing that he had just been given a strong spirit by Mother Nature instead of someone he was supposed to shelter. Jack was surprisingly grateful that Manny had decided to place him under Old Man Winter's care. He was pretty sure that he would've bitten the dust long ago if someone hadn't shown him that most of the legends out there were absolute jerks.

Anyway, Old Man Winter had conjured up a huge storm in vengeance and the rest of the Guardians, having not interacted with seasonal immortals enough to realize that not all winter storms were caused by Jack, immediately blamed their youngest member for it. Jack hoped Old Man Winter was happy with himself, because the cheeky bastard was going to get it later. Because of that "little" storm, Jack was stuck at the North Pole for a month. He still had sixteen days left until he could be released. He was just glad he had been suspended on one of the months where he didn't have nearly as many snow days to try and deal out.

In his boredom, he didn't hear the door open or realize someone else was in the room until he heard the snarky voice behind him. "Looks like Frosty's grounded. Literally."

Jack shot up to his feet even as North stepped forward, trying to get between the two. "Thanks, Bunny, your words of encouragement are _always_ welcome," he said with more than a little snarky attitude on the side. He had been penned up for two weeks already and was not happy about being unable to get more than four feet off the ground.

North could sense the fight that they were about to devolve into and, trying to protect his office that they were standing in as well as any sense of discipline that this place still had, planted himself between the two. "Jack, sit down. Bunny, do not rile up easily irritated winter spirit."

"Easily irritated…!"

"Yer provin' 'im right wi'out my 'elp. Good job." Bunny leaned against the door, smirking. Jack glared at him. North barely had time to open his mouth before the winter spirit jumped over the table and moved towards Bunny, a snowball already forming in his hands from the power he'd had building up inside over the last few days.

Bunny saw it coming and ducked out into the hallway, halfway to the stairs before North was able to even get to the door. Jack was in close pursuit, using ice to make up the distance between the two of them. North groaned, realizing there was no way he was going to be able to catch them when they were like this. Some of the nearby yetis gave him frantic looks and gestured for him to do anything before they destroyed something. He sighed and shrugged.

-.-.-.-

Unsurprisingly, there were three tables and twenty pounds worth of toys destroyed before North was finally able to pin Jack against the wall with one hand and hold Bunny still by grabbing him by one ear. The two were distinctly uncomfortable, what with Jack's face planted against the wood and Bunny holding his head at an odd angle to stop his ear from being yanked uncomfortably. The yetis were nodding in approval as they began fixing the mess.

"Hey, 'e started it!" Bunny snapped, trying to whack North's arm away with one of his paws. North frowned, shaking his head.

"You started it, he continued it," North said firmly.

"Hey, does this mean you can let _me_ go?" Jack asked hopefully.

"You should not have continued it."

"Great, Bunny, now I have one more lecture to listen to."

"Hey, this was all yer fault anyway!"

"I was doing perfectly well until you-"

North gave them a rough shake and drew pained winces from both. "You are _both_ grounded now, thanks to Bunny."

"Hey, he's _always_ grounded!" Jack protested. "Tell me how that's fair!"

"Because I am releasing you from North Pole-"

"_Yes_! Thank you, Bunny!"

"Crickey, North!"

"-and putting you both under house arrest together."

They paused, thinking about that for a second. "Wait, what?" Bunny finally said, trying to figure out what that exactly meant. Jack shot a confused glance over his shoulder and the two exchanged a concerned look.

"At Jack's place."

"_What_?"

"Hey, that is _definitely_ not fair!"

"You know what is not fair? Yetis having to repair your work. They not trust you with rebuilding toys, so you do other punishment. Do you want me to have you under yetis' eyes for getting punishment instead?"

They exchanged another look. "Well, that might be preferable…" Bunny said carefully.

"Too bad."

"Hey, North, bit of a problem here," Jack said, awkwardly waving one of his arms. "It's cold in Burgess. Bunny'll freeze his cute little tail off and everyone's going to blame me for that too."

"You will be inside, obviously."

"Uh, there _is_ no inside at my place."

Bunny frowned, shifting to try and get into a better position to accommodate for his ear's awkward angle. "Don't tell me ya just sleep outside all the time."

"Says the one who usually sleeps with eggs piled on them!"

"Wait, ya _do_ sleep outside?!"

"Yeah, the pond's my home!"

"That's messed up," Bunny said with no tact whatsoever. North frowned and gave his ear a shake, eliciting a swear from the large rabbit as he jostled around to try and cover for the sudden change in position.

"When I want home interior decorating advice from you, I'll ask!" Jack snapped.

"Both of you!" North shouted. The two quieted. "Go to Bunny's Warren instead."

"He'll screw up the place!"

"I have faith in you to keep a winter spirit calm for a week," North said calmly, inwardly happy to have the high-strung teenager off his hands. Jack was usually great to be around, so long as he wasn't doing anything aimed at North, but without his staff and under punishment, his attitude turned on itself and became offensive towards everything.

"North, this is ridiculous!"

"It is just a week. Maybe the two of you will learn patience." He gestured for a yeti to come over with a sharp jerk of his head. The yeti held Jack for him while he pulled out a snow globe and threw it at the floor. North pushed Bunny in and the yeti tossed Jack through. The snow globe closed up and North sighed. "That is one problem I am glad to put in someone else's hands," he said. "Come, let us fix their mess."

"Plarguh bagherl?"

"Oh, of course they will partially destroy Warren. But it is closer to Christmas than Easter and we cannot risk another setback the two may cause here," North said offhandedly. "I will ask Tooth or Sandy to check up on them and make sure nothing too bad has happened." The yeti sighed but didn't argue further. It really was better to have the two out of their hands.

-.-.-.-

After a ten minute yelling match about whose fault it was, Jack finally threw up his hands in irritation and stalked off in one direction. "Fine! I'm going over here!"

They were in one of the corners of the Warren, in an open area by a water fall and a field of yellow and red lilies. Jack was staying away from the pool of water, partly because the noise of it made it harder to hear Bunny and exchange insults but also out of a deeply ingrained fear of the water. This water fall must have been where the river started, because part of it flowed out into the rest of the Warren. On the other side of them, they were blocked off from whatever lay beyond in the underground area by a row of large boulders with moss growing all over them.

"You do that!" Bunny yelled at him, resting against one of the boulders. For all intents and purposes, he really did want the kid to go. They were both angry and that never ended in anything good.

"As far as I care, I don't have to see you for the rest of the week!"

"I'll be sure ya won't!"

"Good!"

"Great!"

"Stop talking to me!"

"Yer talking ta me!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"I thought ya said ya were goin' over there!"

"I am over here!" Granted, he had only moved two meters, but still.

"Go a little further, I can still hear the annoyin' buzz 'a yer voice!"

"Yeah, well yours is _way_ more annoying! It's like an itch I can't scratch!"

"It's worse than tryin' ta scratch, just listenin' ta yer constant blabber!"

"At least I don't have to sit to scratch myself!"

"Hey, it's just habit!"

"Sure."

"Come over 'ere an' say that! I dare ya!" Bunny stood up and walked a few steps over, body tensed.

"Hey, I don't have to resort to a display of muscles, unlike someone I could mention!" He started pacing irritably, fully aware that a certain amount of insults could make the Easter Bunny react by throwing stuff at him. It had happened before, but hopefully he could find a way around that. Besides, they were both obviously trying to keep their distance right now, and Jack was trying to avoid getting his back put to the water. That was a bit difficult since Bunny was facing him head on right now and that seemed to be the only direction he could go.

"What makes ya think I have ta resort ta that? It's just easier'n playin' word games wi' ya!" He took another step forward, blocking out another escape route for Jack without even thinking about it.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Please. You haven't gotten a single good insult off. I'm kinda getting bored and you know how hard it is to do put _me_ in a position where I'm not entertained."

"That's 'cause ya've had ta entertain yerself fer three hundred years wi'out anyone else," Bunny shot back snidely, crossing his arms instead of gesturing with them like he had been doing before. It wouldn't do any help to still seem violent when he was trying to get his point across without actions.

Jack shrugged. "Hey, at least I've picked up some worthwhile skills. Whereas you know what, exactly?"

"A sense 'a decency, instead 'a pickin' a fight wi' everyone. Knowin' when ta stop when I'm ahead instead 'a rushin' blindly inta trouble. Thinkin' about what might happen before I do somethin'. I guess that all falls under common sense, doesn't it?"

"Bunny, if I didn't have common sense, I'd definitely be dead by now," Jack said with more than a hint of humor. "I haven't been able to rely on a huge place left to me by my family to get me through everything."

Bunny's expression hardened at that. "At least my family cared enough ta leave me _somethin'_."

Jack froze for a split second, entire body going taut. Bunny's eyes narrowed, curious about the sudden stillness. "At least I didn't spend years mourning mine."

It was Bunny's turn to go still. A snarl broke through after a moment. "I spent those years doin' somethin' productive. An' ya did what, exactly?"

Jack snorted, trying to brush it off. He knew he was falling into a trap but spoke anyway. "What do you think you know about me, huh, Bunny? We barely spoke until I became a Guardian, and even now we don't even cross paths often enough to talk."

"Ya don't belong anywhere."

"Not true."

"Ya live on a tiny pond in the woods an' stayed there even when no one around could see ya. Ya woulda gone somewhere if anyone had wanted ya." Jack remained silent and Bunny moved onto his next point. "Ya spent hundreds of years talkin' ta yerself fer company."

"I was usually talking to the wind."

"An' did it ever talk back?"

"The wind can't talk, stupid."

"So then why'd ya talk ta it?"

Jack opened his mouth and then closed it. The explanation was too long and personal to share with someone he was in the middle of arguing with. He folded his arms, leaning to one side. This month was getting worse and worse. With any luck, North would realize he had made a huge mistake putting them together and would come separate them. But for now, there was no way Jack could back out. "I can't believe you think your conversation skills are better than mine."

"I get along wi' everyone important that I work wi', as opposed to you."

Everyone _important_.

"I think you're forgetting that I don't have anyone I work with but you guys, and the only one I don't get along with is you."

Bunny rolled his eyes, stepping forward again. It was probably just because he was shifting his weight, but Jack moved back anyway out of reflex. He didn't have his staff and there was no way he'd be able to best Bunny in a fight without control of his powers.

A loud sound startled both of them and pain wrapped around the lower part of Jack's leg. He had stepped back into the pool on accident. Unable to ice over the water like normal, it had iced over too late, after his foot was already stuck. The rest was stuck, his leg pinned in place by the ice. Needless to say, it was painful. He yanked at his leg twice, small cracks appearing and disappearing each time. With a growl he pulled one more time, throwing his entire body weight backwards. That broke the ice. It didn't reform fast enough and he was on the ground a moment later, staring up at the ceiling in surprise.

He rolled up and got to his feet, brushing frozen water off his leg with fervor. Bunny was staring at him, and it looked like he wasn't sure whether he should be helping or laughing. Jack got the rest of the ice off, shaking his leg to be sure. He glared at the pool, as if it was somehow its fault.

"Yer afraid 'a water."

Jack whirled around. "Am not!"

"You so are. Yer afraid 'a _water_. Wow. Of anythin', that is…" Bunny shook his head, a grin already on his face. "It's not like it's goin' ta cause ya any harm. It'll freeze as soon as ya step on it anyway. _Water_…" He snickered, unable to stop himself from letting out a laugh or two.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, get it out. I don't care. I'll bet you have stupid fears too."

"Stupid fears doesn't even cover _water_."

"Yeah, well, you spend your days around eggs. It's bound to rot your head eventually and make up some random junk in there."

"I don't just spend my days around eggs," Bunny scoffed.

"Oh?"

"I know It's hard ta imagine fer someone like ya." Jack looked confused for a moment so he elaborated. "Yer a winter spirit, Frostbite. When was the last time ya spoke ta Old Man Winter or any 'a his subordinates? Honestly? They've never had yer back. They're aren't goin' ta anytime soon either. Let's sum this up, shall we?" Jack raisd his eyebrow, a half smirk in place. "Ya don't have a 'ome. Ya don't belong anywhere. Ya don't 'ave a family. Ya don't 'ave a friend outside 'a the ones Manny made fer ya. Ya can't do anythin' right, so ya've _been alone_ fer three hundred years. Ya probably still would be if not fer last Easter. An'-"

He stopped suddenly, biting back his next remark. He turned away, stalking off. Jack paused, confused. Before Bunny could turn back around, he swiped his hand across his eyes, wiping away moisture that had begun to collect there. "What, done already?"

"Yes."

"Really, 'cause I hadn't even started-"

Bunny whirled around. "Jack, I've got about twenty more things I could say ta say ta ya. Leave me alone before I say 'em."

"That sounds like a challenge."

"_Shut up, Jack_!"

Jack opened his mouth but Bunny was already gone. He knew Jack was just going to strike out in anger now, but that wasn't fair for him. The kid didn't have nearly as much he could throw at Bunny as Bunny could throw at Jack, and stopping it now was the only way to keep it even. Jack could say Bunny had stopped him from returning the blow while Bunny was the one to retreat. It was his fault for pushing the argument anyway.

-.-.-.-

They stayed out of each other's way for the next four days before Bunny realized it was time to do something about this. He opened a hole to the North Pole and jumped through. He slid out at the end and moved quickly, keeping quiet and low to hide from North. It was weird to be hiding here at the workshop, a place he had always been able to saunter proudly through, but he really had to get the staff without anyone stopping him.

He paused outside North's office, listening first to make sure no one was in there. Then he pushed the door open carefully and slipped in, closing it behind him. The staff was leaning right where North had left it. Bunny breathed out a sigh of relief and picked it up, tilting it back and forth in his hands. He had never actually held it before, he realized. Jack was always holding onto it, wherever he went. Why was that, Bunny mused. It must have held some serious value to him.

There was a crack in the center and some of the edges looked newer than the rest. Sandy and Tooth wouldn't have noticed and North would have just seen a slight color difference, but Bunny's eye could see the fine difference. The wood wasn't exactly the same. The staff had been through a lot, just like Jack had. Bunny sighed, gripping it tighter. This was something Jack sorely needed back. Bunny couldn't blame the kid for being so quick to anger when he had shown up after having the staff separated from him for so long. After having it with him for three hundred years, he was bound to be nervous when he didn't have it for any length of time.

His ears twitched as he heard North's voice talking to some yetis. The door was pushed open just as Bunny disappeared into a tunnel. North finished the conversation and then sent the yetis on their way. He settled in his chair and got to work on a new ballerina idea he had. After a few moments, he turned to open one of his drawers to grab a smaller hammer. Something caught his eye, making him pause.

A blue lily was growing out of the floor.

He turned around to check that the staff was still there. Unsurprisingly, it was gone. He leaned back in his chair, thoughtful. He had suspected that a month would be too long and that the staff would have been gone before then. However, that _Bunny_ had taken it…?

-.-.-.-

Bunny hurried through the Warren, sniffing out Jack's location. Through unspoken mutual consent, they had each remained in opposite ends of the Warren and not crossed a certain boundary for any reason. Bunny barely paused as he crossed the boundary, heading straight towards Jack. It was a little odd, travelling with the staff in one paw, but he made it work. The back of the teenager came into view, sitting on the edge of a rock. He had both fists resting under his chin, staring off into the distant. He looked incredibly bored if his posture was anything to judge by.

Bunny slowed down and walked up behind him, not even bothering to hide his presence. Jack didn't react although he must have known that Bunny was there. Not having a clue what to say, Bunny just set the staff down next to the spirit and walked away. He felt a gust of wind behind him a few seconds later and knew Jack was gone.

He hoped it wasn't for good.

-.-.-.-

a/n: This phase was called "Frontage" because it shows just how much of a mask he has up when he can still hurl insults at Bunny when he's in pain. This was an interlude because it wasn't really a problem caused by Jack that got him into this mess, but it needed to be included because of something that will happen in the conclusion.

Yeah, yeah, I know that Pitch never mentioned Jack being afraid of water. However, in that context, he couldn't really have said, "That's one thing I always know. People's greatest fears. Yours is that no one will ever believe in you. And worst of all, you're afraid you'll never know why. Why you? Why were you chosen to be like this? Oh, yeah, and you're scared of water too."


	8. Fourth Phase (1)

**Fourth phase (1)**

**Negligence**

**Brazil, 2014**

To say things were awkward was an understatement.

After considering the fact that Bunny had broken his suspension and been given an extra month's punishment at the North Pole for it , Jack had relented and decided he might as well chip in to do his part in resolving the relationship. He had slipped in and harassed Bunny into following him out of the Pole, making it clear to any bystanders that it was his fault. The rabbit calmed down as soon as they were outside and Jack made it clear he was just there to break him out.

A moment of awkward silence had passed as they realized they were both now on the run from North. Bunny had suggested they high tail it to somewhere North wouldn't expect them to go. That was how Jack found himself in a park by the beaches of Brazil, extremely uncomfortable in such high temperatures. Bunny wasn't as badly off, although his fur did trap in quite a bit of heat. They had walked around in silence, each thinking about different ways they could spread their center around the area when it came time for it. The silence hadn't been broken since they had arrived and neither saw any reason to make a perfectly awkward situation even more awkward.

Jack finally broke and turned to face Bunny. "Okay, I started it," he admitted.

Bunny shook his head. "I shouldn't 'ave come when it was just ta pick a fight." He glanced at Jack before looking away. "An'… welcome…time..."

Jack frowned. "What?"

"Ya heard me."

"Read my face, Bunny. Just 'cause you have super hearing doesn't mean everyone else does."

Bunny groaned. "Fine. I was talkin' ta the others about ya."

"Okay, that's weird."

"It's depressin' that the pond's the only place ya call home when it's so empty. Yer welcome at any of our homes anytime. Jus'…thought we'd extend the offer." He breathed out a sigh. "I know…some 'a what I said was true. But I don't think it's…" He paused. "I hate emotional talks."

"You're telling me. Feel free to stop whenever you feel like it."

"Yeah, I'm done."

"I just can't believe…"

"I thought ya said ta give up on the emotional talks."

"I can't believe that he managed to _ground us_. I mean, what are we, five?"

"You listen, if any other immortal ever hears about this-"

Jack held up his hands. "Hey, you never speak about it again, I won't either. I'd like to forget this as soon as possible. I just don't understand how he managed to get you to stay put too."

Bunny sighed, ears twitching in irritation. "We came ta an agreement a few hundred years ago after a rough argument that there had ta be some way ta get everyone ta calm down. There's no one ta control us, other than Manny. So we started the house arrest thing. It's an honor system. We stay in our homes and assume the others will too if they get placed under it."

"This happens…often?"

"Usually just ta North an' I. Tooth got it twice. Sandy hasn't, ever."

Jack frowned. "Wait, so it works under an honor system?"

"Ya deaf? That's what I said."

"But then, why was I under house arrest at North's? My home's the pond."

Bunny shrugged. "Yer new. North didn't know how ya'd take to it." Jack's frown deepened but Bunny ignored it. He wasn't a therapist, damn it. "I gotta get goin'." Jack nodded, lost in his own thoughts and not caring enough to try and postpone the rabbit's departure. Bunny had other things to do then have a heart to heart with the winter spirit, and he figured that enough time had passed that North would have halted his search for them.

Jack didn't ask for an apology about the argument in the Warren and Bunny didn't give one, nor vice versa. Bunny turned away without a second thought and tapped his foot against the ground. He jumped into the hole and vanished a moment later. Jack sighed and leaned back, hooking both elbows through his staff and resting it against his shoulders. He tilted his head back and looked up at the sky, blowing out a breath. Dealing with Bunny always left him with a vaguely exhausted feeling, even if he would never let him see it. He suspected Bunny felt the same way. They butted heads every time out of nature.

He idly wondered if there would ever be a day when they didn't.

An uncomfortably hot feeling rose up beneath his feet. He flinched, jumping up and bouncing back and forth beneath his feet to try and get rid of the feeling. The wind picked him up and dropped him off on a nearby park bench. He frowned, looking down at the ground. Faint curls of steam were rising up from it. It looked painful just staring at it.

"Who are you, a winter sprite?" a voice asked.

He looked up and met the gaze of the woman in front of him. She hadn't been there a moment ago, but that wasn't any surprise to him. Odd things happened in the world of legends and immortals. Her bright red hair was tied back away from her face, but the tail was bushy and still stuck out every which way behind her. She had on a sleeveless green and red dress over a white petticoat.

"Winter spirit, actually," he corrected, feet still firmly planted on the bench. He wasn't going anywhere near her if the ground was that hot. "Summer spirit?"

"Yeah." She frowned, taking a closer look at him. "You're… You're the winter spirit that the leprechauns back home always complain about! Do you have any idea about how angry they are at you? I should've recognized you immediately. White hair and staff, they said. Making trouble everywhere because you don't care about what you might be destroying." Jack raised an eyebrow, hiding a slight flinch from her. "Get out of summer territory."

"Hold on, 'winter spirit' is a bit of a misnomer. I don't actually work for Winter. I'm a spirit of my own accord."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, and I'm a fairy."

"You are? Fooled me."

"Get out."

He hopped down from the arm of the bench to crouch on the seat of it. He tilted his head to one side and beamed at her. "But it's so warm here! Did you know I haven't been anywhere in summer for over three hundred years?"

"No, and I could've _lived_ three hundred years without even wanting to know that. I'm going to come over there and smack you if you don't get out of here right now." She looked incredibly cross as she folded her arms and glared at him. He wasn't sure what the fuss was about when he hadn't even frosted anything over yet. Now that she was here, though, he was incredibly tempted to try and see what would happen in the middle of a Brazilian summer.

"Not even if I say please?"

She stepped forward. The heat from the ground rose up onto the bench. Jack suppressed a hiss of pain and jumped up onto the top of the back of the bench. He looked at her with a mock-pained expression although his feet really were killing him. "I want you out of here. Now." Her Irish accent added to the inflection in her voice but the dress and petticoat did not. It was getting harder and harder to take her seriously even though he knew he had several reasons to. He knew he probably looked even odder, with pants from the seventeen hundreds and a sweat shirt from ten years ago.

"But-"

The heat blast swept him off the bench and planted him on his back. He flipped over from the force of it, elbows scraping the hot ground. She lined up another shot but he was already in the air, jumping into a tree. He wasn't sure if the wind was going to be divided between him and someone who seemed to be his opposite in another season, so he didn't try and see just how much he could use against her. She glared at him and shot another blast at him. He waved it off with a shock of frost from his staff.

"What's with the stick?" she demanded.

"It just works for me, okay?" He ducked underneath another blast. "What's with the dress?"

"I'm Irish!" she said, stomping her foot.

"Yeah, I got that already."

"At least I know what time I'm from!"

He glanced down at himself. "Yeah, the cloak kinda got shredded in Siberia a while back- Woah!" He fell backwards out of the tree trying to dodge the next blow. His feet hit the hot ground and he suppressed a curse before jumping up onto a trashcan. "Look, I'm just curious about what'll happen if I stay here long enough. Maybe I'll melt or something. I don't really have any interest-"

"You _know_ what's going to happen if you stay here any longer! I'm going to fry those eyebrows off you!"

" 'Those _eyebrows'_? First time I've ever heard that."

"They clash with your sweatshirt and hair."

He paused, giving her a weird look. "Um." The next bolt of heat hit him straight in the chest and sent him careening into a tree trunk. He grunted and dropped down to avoid another shot. "Hey, don't I get any credit for not trying to shoot _your_ eyebrows off?" he called out, dodging behind an ice cream truck. None of the mortals had the slightest clue as to what was going on around them.

"You get negative credit for being here in the first place!"

"I was just hanging out with a friend!"

"Uh huh. The Easter Bunny and a winter sprite."

"Spirit!"

"Likely combination," she continued like he hadn't spoken.

"It's a long story and I'm too busy keeping my eyebrows to tell it."

"I don't care anyway," she said frankly, blasting at his feet.

"OW!"

"Scat already! Can't you see you're not wanted?"

He ducked under a bolt, hearing it hit a trashcan and throwing it into the side of the ice cream truck but not turning to see how much damage was done. Another shot from hers hit a tree branch, which creaked for a few seconds before crashing down. "You are _violent_."

"You better believe it!" He backpedaled quickly to avoid three bolts he almost collided with. They hit the same tree, which began tilting to one side rather dangerously. He tapped the trunk with his staff, hoping the ice would keep it together long enough for someone to safely cut it the rest of the way down. She shot at him again, ruining that hope as it creaked once more before crashing down above Jack's head. He ducked down, shielding his head with his arms as branches slammed into the ground around him. The trunk rolled a bit from the sudden momentum. He dropped down further, trying to avoid being smashed. The branches settled after a few more seconds and he uncurled himself from underneath the trunk.

The summer spirit shot at his head and he jumped out as fast as he could. He spent several minutes running around the park with her right on his heels, random things getting blown up or knocked over everywhere they went. Shooting her with a bolt of frost seemed like a bad idea when she was in her season and he was completely alone if she got back up. Not to mention that even if Old Man Winter didn't come after him, Old Man North was sure to for doing something so immature. The smart thing to do at this rate was to just leave, but annoying her was just plain fun. He knew it was a bad idea to stick around much longer all the same. It made it just that much more amusing to dodge between trees and bushes as she tried to knock him out of commission. She landed a few lucky blows but nothing too major.

Jack jumped from a bench into a tree, looking down below at the summer spirit. "Look, I'm not looking for a fight here. At this point, I'm just hanging around to annoy you. So would you mind laying off with the heated bolts? It's not really fair when I'm not attacking back." He rubbed absently at his chest, trying not to give away the pain he was feeling from the shot she had gotten in close to the beginning of the fight.

"I don't care if it's fair or not!" She sent a bolt at his staff. It fell out of his hand and clattered onto the ground below. He tried to snatch it before it was out of reach but another shot inches in front of his face made him pull away and scurry up another branch with a glance over his shoulder to see if she was still firing at him. She was indeed, firing multiple bolts in quick succession to keep him up there. He paused, fifteen meters over her head as she walked under the tree and eyed him, making sure he stayed there as she bent down and grabbed his staff.

"Ah, that's…" He trailed off as she ran her hands over it. An uncomfortable feeling went through him and he shivered. Her hands were too hot to be touching that. "Do you mind?"

She glanced up at him. "No." She flicked her finger against the branch of the tree. It created a spark, and a flame danced across the length of her fingernail. She turned her hand over and the small flame grew into a fireball in her palm.

"Hold on, _wait_!" Jack cried out as she touched her hand to the staff. It was slow to catch fire, but he felt the flames beginning to take hold of the wood. "I'll leave!"

She glanced up at him. "Not with the staff, you won't." She gripped the burning end with her non-flaming hand before touching the fireball to the crook.

Jack dropped out of the tree and landed beside her. She stepped back but wasn't fast enough to avoid the foot that was planted in her stomach. Her breath left her and she stumbled, clutching her midsection and growling a stream of profanity under her breath. Jack ignored her for a second, twirling his staff and causing a few sparks of frost to dance around it as he shook out the flames. It still felt like his feet and hands were the things that had been on fire, but he could work on the repair later.

Her arm caught him in the side of the head. He nearly fell but caught himself in time to bring his staff up and block the next blow. Her bolts were fast and close now, intended to take him out permanently. He didn't have the necessary time to get the air and still watch her to make sure he wasn't fried. She moved forward again, the fireball in her hand whizzing towards him. He ducked and it shot past overhead. Before she could throw anything else, he pushed forward and shoved his staff into him. She fell backwards a step but was quick to kick out. He refrained from making a comment about how unladylike that was, especially considering the dress she was wearing.

The fight went on for another half hour. People were evacuated for the area, as no one had a clue what was going on and trees were falling for no reason while the ground turned lava hot. Finally, they both stepped back and realized how badly their damage had affected the place. They turned to each other guiltily, calling off the fight without saying anything. As immortal spirits, they weren't supposed to interfere with humans or even reveal that they existed. This crossed both lines. The Irish summer spirit turned, shoulders slumped, and sank down into the ground.

So instead of using the winds, she used the ground to melt away and to transfer heat. He could've used the winds the entire time and had had no clue.

With a groan, he sat down on one of the remaining benches and looked around. Everything had been uprooted and tossed around. The ground was strewn in branches and leaves, and sidewalks had cracked from the intense heat they had been subject to. Trashcans had been split open and had their contents strewn all over the place. He didn't see any bodies, thankfully, and there were no crashed vehicles. It had either been a slow day at the park or everyone had evacuated quickly.

He leaned his head back against the bench. He supposed he could just leave. Someone else would take care of it, right? A pang of guilt stopped him from doing so. All this destruction could have hurt someone and he was at fault for not leaving. With a sigh, he stood up, pushing himself off the bench. He needed to clean this up.

Or so he thought, until his feet gave out beneath him.

He collapsed onto the grass with an irritated sound. A glance at his feet confirmed his suspicions. They had been torn and were blistered from the heat the summer spirit had pumped into the ground. It would be a while before he could stand on them if the color of red they had turned way anything to go by. He knew he was injured in other places, as he was able to clearly see scorch marks on his sweatshirt and pants, but didn't feel like taking the time to stop and check all of them out.

He got to work, using the wind to push aside small branches and leaves. The trash was spun up into little piles and collected inside the trashcan, even though the metal containers were left open. There was nothing he could do about the fallen trees without causing even more problems. The sidewalks were beyond his abilities, since ice would just crack them further. It took him a while to clean up the majority of the mess, but by the time he was done, the mortals had only managed to clean away the first three trees.

With a sigh, he turned and left. There was nothing left for him to do unless he was interested in waiting around for another summer spirit to come and finish the Irish woman's attempt to fry off his eyebrows.

-.-.-.-

Tooth paused at the edge of the lake and looked around. A shock of white in one of the trees caught her attention and she flew over, hovering in the air beside the small figure. Jack turned his head to glance at her. She didn't let him see her dismay at his lack of a reaction, instead settling down in front of him. He had his hood up and the light wasn't good enough for her to see his face. She smiled, hoping it would lift his mood.

"I heard you got released," she joked, "and then broke a friend out."

Jack shrugged, a small but pained laugh escaping him. "Yeah, I did that. Is North mad?"

"A bit, but I think he's happier that you and Bunny worked together to do it. I was a bit surprised myself. I thought you two would fall apart instead of getting closer after being stuck in the Warren for a week," she admitted.

"Not far off," Jack said but didn't elaborate.

She moved on when he didn't speak. "I just wanted to let you know…" She paused, thinking about how to say it. "You're always welcome at the Tooth Palace. I know we get frustrated with you sometimes, but it's because we're not used to having someone so young around us again. Try not to stress out about it, okay?"

Jack laughed slightly. It sounded a bit more realistic than the first one. "I'm not."

"You sound like you are."

He didn't respond, more willing to let her think that than have her fuss over him.

She put a hand on his shoulder. "We probably don't always catch onto things the first time around and it'll make us a little difficult to work with for a while. It took years for us to get used to each other and look at us now. Promise me that you'll not give up on our pathetic attempts to get used to someone new?"

He seemed to smile, but she couldn't tell with the hood blocking her view. "Yeah," he said, reaching up to grip her hand. "Of course."

-.-.-.-

a/n: In Tooth's defense before anyone harps on her. How the hell was she supposed to know that Jack gets into trouble all the time and just got the *tootsie fruits* kicked out of him? (Craig Ferguson's Late Late Show's version of bleeping out bad words, if you didn't get that joke) And Jack just does such a damn good job of pretending everything's okay.

This phase was called "Negligence" because that's a word people associate him with, even though it's not entirely true. With people like Jack, you can't just look at them and immediately see behind the mask. You have to watch their actions and not their words. This was getting a peek the lie behind a word he never has bothered to correct people on.


	9. End Phase (1)

**End phase (1)**

**Alone**

**Canada, present day**

Jack came to a halt by the edge of the lake in front of him. He always enjoyed northern Canada. Some lakes like this one were almost always frozen, since it was rarely warm enough for them to begin thawing. It was nice to be able to come back to the same place every time and not have to worry about it suddenly being gone. Since the planet had begun warming up, the lakes had been melting more and more often. This one had not melted until ten years ago and had only done so two times since. Now was one of those rare times when he visited and it wasn't a solid sheet of ice.

The moon was setting on the other side, slowly sinking down behind the evergreens. Jack leaned on his staff and watched it, letting his thought process wander. He knew Manny worried about him, probably more than he did about any of the other Guardians. If something happened to one of them while they were doing their job, someone would know immediately. Jack, on the other hand, probably wouldn't be noticed as absent for a while. Manny would have to be the one to send out the alarm, and even then, he might not know what was going on. He was only around during the night, after all. Jack's very nature attracted trouble to him as well. Enough scrapes over the years had taught him that, but his arrogant and mischievous streak wasn't something he was ready to curb just yet.

It was nice that someone was trying to look out for him. The wind had metaphorically gotten a head full of grey hair trying to keep an eye on him and had seemed to just give up after a time. It still carried him around and was happy that he still relied on it, but if he got into trouble, it wasn't as eager to sweep in and save him. This had been going on since before he became a Guardian so he knew it wasn't because of that. The wind's reaction to that had been a little odd, though. It had seemed pleased about his acceptance, but had gotten much quieter since. He had tried to tell it that he wasn't shouldering it aside, but that didn't seem to be what the wind was distancing itself about. If he had to wager a guess, it was almost like it was handing him off to them.

He found that very irritating.

Since when had he become someone who had to be coddled and passed from sheltering hands to sheltering hands? He had taken care of himself for three hundred years, thank you. It seemed pretty obvious that he knew what he was doing by now. He didn't need someone to protect him. No, he had needed someone to pick up the slack for him three hundred years ago when he'd had no idea what the heck he was doing. He still got into trouble once in a while, but he wasn't about to ask for help now when he had never done so before. He knew he could take care of himself, even if it was harder than normal every so often. Being reliant on someone else to help when he was in a tough spot just wasn't something he was going to be able to easily do.

Despite that, he didn't blame the wind. It had been around him during his stupid years and would obviously have reservations about letting him out into the world on his own. He had a tendency to act before thinking and it had gotten him into a clinch more times than he could count. The wind had seen it happen so many times it probably thought it was a normal thing by now, like the seasons transitioning across the globe every year. It was probably also tired of watching his back even though it never acted like it. Sometimes Jack wished the wind could speak, but other times, he was happy it was silent. The wind was much older than he, and an elder who would try to impart wisdom upon him was something he was all too happy to avoid.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. Taking a quick stop had been wise enough, he supposed, even though he didn't like breaks. He got tired more easily now because his power came from something other than the winter and Manny. Becoming a Guardian, however, seemed have been a switch. It became natural for children to grow up knowing Jack's name along with the other four's. He was just another part of the legends they thought about until they reached a certain point. It was incredible how fast the belief had spread, and he had done everything he could to nurture it and help it grow. Something very helpful was that he was actually allowed among the children.

Unlike the other's centers, his was one that had to be experienced up close. It was hard to just spread fun without it coming from a specific source. He could drop down by a school and hang around long enough to start up a snowball fight before taking up. Usually he was gone before a child caught sight of who actually threw the first shot, but occasionally someone would be looking in the right place at the right time and laugh and wave while he took off into the sky. It had been an odd thing for the other Guardians to deal with, since their jobs required them to move around at night. His job required for them to be awake.

Just about no one was awake here, but that meant it was a good place to take a break at. He didn't have to worry about children accidentally stumbling upon him. His break had been well deserved, but it was time to get back to what he was supposed to be doing. He twirled his staff in one hand and set off along the edge of the lake as the last of the moon disappeared behind the trees. The snow didn't crunch underneath his feet. He was too light for that. Even though that sound was one of the things people immediately thought of when they were walking in the snow, he still enjoyed walking in the snow without it. Flying was better, but if he flew around all the time, there was no point in having-

Something snapped up from the ground and grabbed his legs.

He fell, surprised at the sudden movement and unable to catch his balance fast enough. Before he could turn and see what it was, the object yanked him sharply towards the water. He scrabbled at the ground, trying to stop himself from being pulled any closer. His toe touched the edge, instantly freezing it over. He skidded out onto the layer of ice, but the crook of his staff caught on a rock on the shore. The force on his legs pulled him away from it and he accidentally let go, leaving it on the solid ground.

Without it, he couldn't channel ice to the water.

Without it, he sank.

The force dragged him down into the water even as he still tried to pull himself back out. Flailing his arms did little good. He had never swum since that time in China hundreds of years ago, back when he was just a few decades old. Swimming wasn't something that came naturally to him by any means. Drowning, however, apparently was.

He was pulled down deeper and deeper. It probably didn't last nearly as long as he thought it did, but just being in the water made things seem worse than they actually were. He clenched his eyes closed against his surroundings, frantically trying to push his power out through the water. With an agonized jerk, his downward movement stopped as half of the entire lake froze, encompassing him in a thick layer of ice. Unable to breath or move, he remained stuck. His body temperature did nothing helpful, only keeping it colder longer. There was no way for him to control his powers without his staff.

He groaned.

This was exactly what Pitch had meant when he said he made a mess wherever he went.

-.-.-.-

The Nightmare King was, coincidentally enough, thinking about Jack at the same time.

Returning from the shadows had not been pleasant. It had been like suffocating and being trapped, unable to get out even though he knew how. Not being afraid of fear was difficult when one knew the damage it could cause. Resurfacing had only been possible by redirecting every thought that went through his mind, turning every ounce of fear into hatred. Without any difficulty, that particular hatred was directed at Jack Frost.

Not only had Pitch offered him a way out of being destroyed with the rest of the Guardians, he had even warned him about the trials of being one. The winter child would meet his end one day because he hadn't listened, and Pitch hoped he was there to see it. In fact, he wanted to be the one that caused it. If Jack was going to be an immature brat and not listen to Pitch, than he wouldn't listen to anyone ever again. It wasn't like he was going to get better advice from anyone else. Pitch had been Jack's best option, if only he had been wise enough to see it.

He was brought out of his musings by a surprising feeling of fear. All across the world, slight tinges of it were being sent towards him and absorbed, but this little piece was different. It was strong and frantic, crying out in its pain. It was a beautiful sound, being of one of the best kinds – the one people faced when they were in the midst of their greatest fears. Pitch smiled, glad that someone was getting their share of nightmares tonight. He focused in on it, curious about what this particular one was about.

Water.

Darkness.

Murky depths.

Suffocation.

_Water_.

Alone.

Helpless.

_WATER._

Pitch sighed to himself, disappointed. This person wasn't asleep; they were drowning. Since that was the case, he wouldn't be getting fear from this particular idiot ever again. It was disappointing. Their strong fear was something he would miss. It was familiar, too. He was surprised he recognized it, having felt so many different fears over the years, but he had felt it so many times before it was hard not to. He frowned, mulling it over. The fear came from northern Canada, in the Yukon. Had he ever visited this person before to feed off them at close range? No, he had never gone to a place around that lake for such an action.

Who was it, then?

There wasn't going to be any other excitement tonight, he decided. He was in Indonesia at the moment and would be too late to see the child die, but it wasn't something he particular cared about witnessing anyway. It was the last bits of fear that would be so tantalizing, not the death itself. Decision made, he dropped back into the shadows and set off to Canada.

He stepped out a few minutes later from the shade of a tree and moved towards the lake. The area closest to him was frozen solid and there was a layer of frost around it. It was chillier than it should have been, considering the time of year. He stepped out onto the ice without any hesitation. It wasn't like he was going to fall in and it would be easy to get himself out if he did. The boy couldn't be drowning here, of course, but it was likely he had fallen through closer to the melted water. As he walked further out to the center of the lake, though, he felt the fear coming from the opposite direction. He frowned and paused, turning around.

Then he laughed as he missed the most obvious detail.

Jack's staff was lying on the ground by the frozen water.

He laughed long and hard, bending over at the waist from the strain of it. The little spirit was caught in the lake! His own nature had turned against him without a conduit. How he had gotten down there, Pitch didn't know, but down there he was and he looked pretty stuck by the looks of it. Young Jack would not be spreading fun anytime soon, not until the water melted and he was able to swim out.

His laughing died away as he realized that was not indeed the case, no matter how much he wished it might be. He shot a scornful look in the direction the moon had disappeared just minutes before. As soon as the Man in the Moon rose the next night and saw the peril of his youngest Guardian, he would be sure to raise him from the ice. Jack's imprisonment would not be long. He would have a full day to wait, but would be flying through the skies soon enough with the possibility of an immortal's death far from his mind once more.

Right now, though, any rational thought seemed to have been banished from Jack's mind. All he was thinking about was drowning and death. As far as he was concerned, today would be his last. Pitch glanced up at the sky, realizing he didn't have long to stay here. The sun was rising soon. It wasn't a time of year when it or the moon would be around for the entire day, but that didn't mean it wouldn't be up. He sighed in frustration. Jack's fear was something he wanted to stick around to see firsthand, but by the time he tried to return, Manny would have already raised him from the ice. Pitch might catch him just as he was flying away.

It was too bad Jack couldn't stay in the ice for just a little longer.

Pitch paused on that thought. He disappeared before the sun could rise, but his thoughts remained on the pond as they turned over in his mind. There had to be a way to stop Jack from being raised out of the pond. It would be a while before the ice melted, and even then, Jack would still have to get out of the water. Pitch could probably find a way to keep him in there by blocking his escape with nightmare sand. If Manny was dealt with, Jack would remain in the ice for a rather long time.

No, not Manny. Manny's _power_ was the problem. Pitch couldn't doing anything about it head on, especially not while he was so weak. He didn't need to fight it, though. He just needed to stop Manny from even knowing that Jack was in the ice. If Manny couldn't see Jack, then how would he know where he was? All Pitch had to do was obscure the lake with nightmares and order the nightmares to make it seem like everything was normal there. Manny would notice his young spirit was missing soon enough, but his moonbeam messengers would not think to check under a layer of ice for him. It would delay him long enough for Jack to remain imprisoned for as long as Pitch needed him to be.

And how long was that, exactly?

As long as it took for Jack's fear to exponentially raise Pitch's power level to a point where he could match the armies of the Guardians.

He would not have to wait hundreds of years for his power to reach that point with a strong elemental spirit and Guardian as the source of his strength. No, he would be able to fight the Guardians within the year if Jack's fear stayed this strong, or even if it dipped to half this level.

He didn't feel like he had to worry about anything like that, though. The boy had died in the water. Such a deeply ingrained fear would hold its grip on him, even after Pitch had come to full power and was conquering the night.

If Jack ever rose into the sky again, he would find it a vastly different place than the one he had known.

-.-.-.-

"Dad!" Kade cried out, waving his arms by the side of the lake. His father looked up from where he was checking a trap. "This one got something!"

"Are you sure?" his father asked, walking over. He had a bag over one shoulder, carrying some of the small animals that had been caught in the traps in the woods. Those traps were nothing like the ones over here. These were meant to kill big prey. He came to a stop by his son and looked down. The pressurized trap had indeed been sprung and the rope was gone. There were gouges in the ground going in the direction of the water. "Wow. Must've put up a serious fight."

"What do you think it was?" Kade asked, excited. "Maybe a bear?"

The father laughed. "No, this trap wouldn't be strong enough for anything but a cub. It was probably a wolf."

"Really?"

"Mmhmm. But I'm not swimming down to the bottom of the lake to check." For months now, wolves and foxes had been coming into the area and snatching livestock. Kade's family and others nearby had banded together and begun setting traps all over, intent on stopping the animals. Smaller traps had been unable to take out the canines, either being too small or because the creature had not entirely been caught in it. Another device had been created, one made to drag the animal down into the lake and drown it. They had just recently started using it.

"You really think we got one?"

"I really do. Want to go back and tell your mom or should I?"

"No, I want to!" Kade laughed and jumped up and down, waving his arms excitedly. "We caught a wolf! We caught a wolf! Oscar kept telling me he was going to get one first. Just wait until I tell him about this!" He hugged his father and then took off in the direction of home. His father smiled and followed, humming a tune to the wilderness around him.

-.-.-.-

a/n: If there's one thing I hate about this fic, it's that it's so hard to put dialogue in. This chapter had almost none of it with the exception of the end, which was between two characters who you've never met before. Jack's usually getting into trouble on his own, which means there isn't someone around for him to talk to. Sorry about that. I would rather have dialogue, but some things just aren't meant to be. Talking in this story appears to be one of them unless it's two characters arguing.


	10. End Phase (2)

**End phase (2)**

**Alone**

**Canada, present day**

It took a week for the lake to melt.

Jack would have groaned if he'd had any air to groan with. The last of the solid water around him finally gave away. Throughout the seven days, his legs had been in continuous pain as the force tried to pull him down to the bottom of the lake. Jack wasn't sure if he wanted to find out what the source was, but knew that he wouldn't be able to get out of the lake if he couldn't stop it from holding onto him any longer. He watched the last ice chunk float away from, breaking off from his arm and floating to the top. That having been the only force that held him where he was, he quickly was dragged down to the bottom. It was hard not to refreeze the lake, but he really did need to deal with this force.

He stopped moving just a little later as the force relinquished its grasp. He wasn't at the bottom of the lake by far and he could still see the sun shining through the ice quite clearly. Despite how long it had felt like it had taken to get to this point, he probably wasn't that deep underwater. Since he was now able to move and wasn't having half his body dragged away, he was finally able to bend down and see what exactly had his legs trapped.

A thick leather rope was secured around it. It had been tied in a slip knot and had tightened to the point that he couldn't even separate his legs from each other. He tried yanking it apart but the leather was too strong for him to loosen it. He couldn't even pull it off. Despite wanting to go any deeper, he relented and began pulling himself down along the rope to the source. He was disappointed to find some human invention resting at the bottom of the lake. It was hard and not at all flimsy, as he quickly learned. Every attempt of his to break it open only ended in his feet and hands hurting from the attempts and ice forming around him. The ice got in the way occasionally or hampered movement, but it wasn't nearly as bad as freezing the entire lake.

He had the feeling he was going to be at this for a while.

-.-.-.-

Pitch had started coming every night to visit his captive. He wished there was a way for him to let Jack know that there was never going to be an escape for him, but there was no option short of going down into the water himself. That seemed unpleasant and rather avoidable, so he chose not to. Jack would figure it out by himself. He was smart, so long as he actually stopped and thought instead of just rushing headlong into things.

His fear would morph every once in a while although it retained the same basic thoughts. It seemed like the ice had finally melted enough for him to be able to find out what had pulled him down into the lake in the first place. He was now afraid he that he couldn't get out of the trap and wouldn't be able to get to the surface ever again. That was foolish. The restraint would eventually degrade and he would be able to go right to the top without a problem. It was getting out of the lake that he needed to worry about, but he would figure that out later.

The amount of nightmares at his command had already doubled, thanks to Jack. There hadn't been that many left, granted, but the increase in number meant that he could rake in more fear from around the world. More were formed every day, splitting off from already existing nightmares or growing out of corrupted dreams. The original nightmares were assigned to the Yukon whenever it got dark there, having it as their solemn duty to shield the Nightmare King's prize from the Man in the Moon. As of yet, it seemed like Manny hadn't looked closely enough to discover the ploy. With any luck, it would be too late when he finally realized his mistake.

It was getting close to the time of year when the sun would never set. Although that meant Pitch would be unable to come visit, it also meant that the Man in the Moon would be unable to do anything either. He would waste his efforts looking around the globe elsewhere, uselessly searching out his Guardian. Even if he contacted the others, they wouldn't be able to find Jack anymore. His scent had been carried away and there was no sign of him anymore. Nothing, except…

The staff.

Pitch glanced from the lake to the shepherd's crook. It was useless in his hands. Worse than useless, in fact. It was old and about to fall apart. Jack's frost seemed to be the only thing that kept the wood strong. Without him, it wasn't even worth keeping around. Pitch thought about it for a while, wondering if there was anything to be done with it. He couldn't use it, certainly. There was nothing he needed to bargain with Frost for since he was trapped whether he liked it or not and was doing a huge favor for Pitch by just being there.

He raised it and then brought it down over his knee, hard. The staff snapped in half easily. A light came from the lake for less than a second as part of it froze. Pitch smirked and gripped the ends of the two parts of the staff in both hands. He slammed it into his knee again. The rest of the lake froze over with a loud cracking noise. A new wave of fear came from the lake. Jack now knew that someone knew he was down there, but that person wasn't friendly. Pitch smirked, hiding the remains of the staff within the shadows around him. It would be useful later, if only for a few minutes.

For the last time that season, he left the pond. He would return when night fell on the Yukon again.

-.-.-.-

**North Pole, a year and a half later**

Tooth darted through the halls of the workshop, searching for North. The fairies following her were upset, twittering anxiously to each other as they flew. The fairy queen herself had a frightened expression on her face and was nearly running into yetis at the speed she was going. She came to a stop in the globe room as she finally found North.

The Russian was staring up at the rafters, a thoughtful frown set on his face. He didn't seem to be focusing on anything around him in particular, just staring off into space. His trance-like state was not so set that he did not notice Tooth fly into view and hover just a foot away from his face. He tilted his head down from the rafters to look at her, confused. "Tooth! What brings you in such a state?"

"This!" She pushed a piece of wood at him. He took it and eyed the object carefully, trying to determine what it was. "I think its part of Jack's staff!"

North laughed and shook his head. "Part of Jack's staff? Please, Tooth. Why would he cut off part of it and give it to you when he would know it would make you panic? Not like him at all. This is something else entirely. Probably just random piece of branch. Do not worry about it." He tossed it over his shoulder. She winced as it clattered to the ground and darted over to pick it up.

"North, think about it! What if he's in trouble?" she demanded.

North paused and sighed. "I have not seen Jack in two years," he said carefully, looking back up to the rafters for a moment. "Ever since I extended offer of hospitality, he used to come in and sleep up there at least once a month. Even on Christmas, he has not come to visit. Burgess has not had snow day for two years."

"Something happened," she said firmly.

North nodded firmly. "I know. I have already begun looking."

"Then why dismiss the staff?" she cried, shoving it at him again.

He closed his hand around hers and gently pushed it away. "I do not want to consider what may have happened if his staff is destroyed and you received a portion of it," he said softly. Stronger, he continued, "I have already started searching for him. Weather patterns are normal with no sign of him. The wind has not done anything strange in a specific area. There have been no odd events that may be related to him." He rubbed his head. "I hoped I was overreacting, but…" He glanced at her. "You are confirming my fears."

She grimaced, looking at the globe. "He used to come to Punjam Hy Loo monthly, too," she said quietly. "The fairies loved to see him, North. He enjoyed their attention, but he rarely stayed long. It was like he came for a moment of security, or comfort, or… I can't describe it."

"He came because he enjoyed having somewhere he was wanted."

She nodded, biting her lip. "I don't know where he is, North. My fairies are all over the world. I told them to keep an eye out for him, but… I'm scared we're not going to find him." She took a deep breath. "I already talked to Sandy about it. He's been looking for Jack, too, and he's scanning the globe again. I don't think he'll find anything."

"Does Bunny know?"

"Yeah, the rabbit knows," the Pooka grumbled, bounding into view. He stomped some snow off one of his feet. "Frostbite's missin' an' everyone's panicked about it."

Tooth frowned at him. "Bunny," she started in a scolding tone.

He rolled his eyes. "Tooth, 'everyone' includes me." He pulled out two pieces of wood from behind him where they had been secured on his boomerang strap. "Found one 'a those in the Warren an' a yeti was carryin' the other up here when I passed 'im." He watched their expressions become strained. "I guess we're all thinkin' the same thing about what they are, then. I'm guessin' Sandy got the last piece."

"Bunny, when was last time you saw Jack?" North asked.

Bunny paused and resisted the urge to scuff one foot against the floor. "…Brazil. Right after 'e busted me outta here durin' house arrest."

North frowned. "That was almost three years ago!"

"I know!" Bunny snapped. "If ya hadn't noticed, Frosty an' I don't get along too well!"

"Bunny! He's your teammate!"

"He's yours too, an' it's not like ya know anymore about where 'e is then I do! 'Sides, I'm not entirely convinced 'e's hurt like the two 'a ya are. Probably just screwed up an' got his staff broken."

"What, and the wind just delivered these to us?" North demanded.

Bunny shrugged. "The two 'a them are friends."

Both Guardians fixed him with glares. He stared back, not backing down from his position. They were interrupted by Sandy arriving, his sand chariot dissolving as he stepped out and approached them. He lifted the fourth piece of wood, the crook, above his head. Tooth gather up all the pieces in her arm and set them down on the table closest to the globe. Using the crack patterns as guidelines, she connected the four parts together. They all stared at it.

"Looks an awful lot like it," Bunny murmured. North glanced at him. "Hey, even if I think it's probably 'is fault, I still think the little bugger's in trouble." He folded his arms across his chest, thinking. "If the wind delivered the staff…" he mused aloud, "why didn't it also show us where 'e's at?"

"It didn't deliver the staff," Tooth breathed. "But then, who…?"

North gave a sudden shout. "Tooth, you said you were scared! We cannot reconnect staff, this does not help us find Jack, and we are now certain something bad happened to him! The only thing this is doing is make us afraid!"

"Pitch?" Bunny caught on.

"Pitch," North said firmly. "What is he up to?"

"Everyone, 'ead 'ome," Bunny said suddenly. "Last time, all 'a Tooth's fairies got snatched when she wasn't there. We'll rally the troops if somethin' happens, but we can't risk Pitch tryin' the same thing as last time. It'd be a stupid mistake an' we'd only be in more trouble."

"But, Jack-" North started.

"I didn't say we're not goin' ta look for 'im, mate," Bunny grunted. "I just said we need ta make sure our 'omes are protected first. Jack's been gone fer two years. I don't think 'e's goin' anywhere anytime soon."

-.-.-.-

**Canada**

Jack rested in the numbness of the water, eyes closed against the murkiness around him. This place was all too similar to the pond in which he had died. He had tried multiple times to get through the ice, but every attempt he made was abruptly halted as a layer of ice spread out from his fingertips and covered the very surface he was trying to break through. Each movement he made to try always resulted in ice being formed around whichever body part he was moving, and this was no different.

There was no way for him to get out the ice.

He bit his lip, clenching his eyes despite himself. He _knew_ he couldn't get out, and had known that for a long time now. It didn't matter because the agony was the same. If he couldn't get out and the only one who knew he was down here was an enemy, how was he going to get out? Would he ever be able to? Or was this going to be a fate worse than death, a watery grave he had been buried alive in?

He tightened his arms around himself, curled up into a ball. His lungs had been emptied of oxygen long ago and the water had sunk to the bottom of them. He was dead and didn't need air, just as he didn't need food. Whether it was pure luck or not, none of his belief had wavered even though he had been gone for so long. He hadn't made a strong enough impression yet that they were waiting for at least one snow day every year or anything. They just assumed he was part of the reason why they started snowball fights or why the snow was so beautiful.

Sleep was a blissful escape. He had seen the nightmares above the pond and knew they were blocking Manny from seeing him, but they had never entered the chilly waters. They would have been frozen instantly and rendered useless. As a result, sleep became an escape. Even without dreamsand, he could dream of flying through the air and causing snowball fights again. It was painful to wake up and have to consider the option that he would never do either of those things again, or any of the other things that he dreamed of. Would he ever see any of the kids or Guardians again? Did the wind miss him?

Loud thuds from above shook him out of his stupor. He looked up and the water around his head iced up. Even through the ice, though, he could see the dark shapes moving across the top of the pond. He assumed they were nightmares at first, but frowned when he realized there were two clumps of shapes above him, which was most unusual. One of them was definitely nightmares. The other group was made of four that stood on two legs.

He dared to hope.

Long whips lashed out, knocking nightmares away or turning them back into dreamsand as two blades pushed forward through the herd. Boomerangs scythed through the air, cutting through the sand and dodging the little darts that were ripping through nightmares that the boomerangs had missed. The Guardians fought their way through the nightmares, slicing each and every one to sand. Jack began moving up to the surface, watching in awe as the herd that had been hiding his existence for so long was torn apart.

He cheered even though no sound came out. Someone knew he was here other than Pitch. He would be free soon enough. As soon as he got out, he was going to give everyone he could a snow day and have the best snowball fight anyone had ever seen. With that thought in mind, he banged his fist against the ice in the hope that someone would hear. They were _his_ captors; he wanted to be part of this fight, too.

He screamed their names as they passed over, running from one part of the fight to another. As the fight dragged on, he grew more and more desperate, slamming both fists against it. An ice sheet between him and the surface grew thicker and thicker. As more ice accumulated, he knew they would be unable to hear or see him through it. With a grimace, he swam slowly as ice grew over his limbs and then melted to a new area to try again. There had to be a way to make them see him. None of them had given so much as a second glance down, though. They _did_ know he was there, right?

Right?

A darker shadow fell onto the lake. Jack recognized Pitch as he strode forward, fighting it out with various Guardians as they moved around the iced surface. He hit the ice again, only succeeding in making it stronger. A silent groan escaped him and he lightly tapped his head against it. The fight continued despite his attempts to get out. It felt wrong that they would be fighting over his frozen lake and he wasn't able to participate in any way.

A fast shape darted by overhead. He looked up to see Bunny skid past, throwing a boomerang at Pitch. The Bogeyman dodged it and disappeared. He came up behind Bunny a moment later, but the Pooka was ready, another curved piece of wood already heading Pitch's way. Jack grinned as Pitch bent over for a moment. Pitch straightened, scythe forming in his hand. Bunny ducked underneath it and stepped back to avoid having his head separated from the rest of his body. The scythe swung past and hit the ice, piercing the surface and breaking through. Both stumbled as the ice shifted abruptly, tilting dangerously.

Pitch disappeared into the shadows again, leaving Bunny to find his balance of the ice. He didn't give him a lot of time, standing up on sturdier ice and immediately lashing out with his scythe. Bunny tried his best to avoid it, but it was becoming increasingly more difficult with the unsteady footing he had to deal with. Jack growled and slammed his hand against the ice, releasing a burst of power. It shot out around him, freezing everything within forty meters. Once again, he found himself paralyzed in the ice he had created.

The ice underneath Bunny stopped shifting and cracked as the water solidified. Bunny found his footing and dodged Pitch's blow before returning with one of his own. He jumped after Pitch as the Nightmare King tried to make a retreat, throwing boomerang after boomerang. Jack watched on, wanting to see Pitch get hit with one of them more than anything. He followed Bunny with his eyes until they were out of view. With a gesture meant to be a sigh, he turned his gaze back to the rest of the fight.

The last of the nightmares were scattering, and the remainders were all being cut down within moments. Pitch didn't return, not even after the Guardians stood in place for several long minutes, conversing about something and waiting for anymore nightmares to show up. They split up and walked around for a bit, oblivious to Jack as he watched on in horror. Did they have no idea where he was?

After a few more minutes, they began disappearing one by one as they left the area. Jack felt his gaze go blurry as frozen tears obscured his vision and his throat clenched with a sob.

They didn't know where he was.


	11. End Phase (3)

**End phase (3) **

**Alone**

**North Pole**

"It was worth a try," North sighed as they returned to the pole. "Sandy was right, there was a large number of nightmares in that area. It must have just been somewhere they hid during the day. Maybe Pitch's new lair is there."

"He knew where Jack was," Bunny growled, slamming his fist into a wall. "He _knew_."

Tooth nodded. "He seemed too confident for Jack to be in the area. He didn't think we would find Jack."

"We didn't," North said.

A fast pattern of symbols flashed over Sandy's head. They stared at him in confusion for a few seconds before shaking their heads. He sighed and the images faded away, giving up on trying to say what he was thinking.

"We have to find Pitch again," Tooth said wearily. She rubbed her face. "It's going to take a while since Bunny scared him off, but I can't see any other way that we'll find out where he hid Jack." Bunny bit back a protest at that statement. "We need something to offer him, too. A reason why he would give Jack up. If this is part of a plan to take over again, Jack's crucial to it and he won't give him up without good reason."

"Manny was coming out of the clouds," North said. "If Bunny had waited, we would have been able to talk to Pitch."

"Hey!" Bunny gave into the urge. "I was tryin' ta stop 'im from takin' yer 'eads off! Yer welcome, by the way!"

North waved it off. "We are not blaming you. It is just statement. Besides, you were clearly in trouble. Almost fell into lake, no?"

Bunny shifted uncomfortably. "I had it."

North raised an eyebrow but moved on. "Pitch had a large army," he said. "He did not have any such amount when we last saw him. Something happened. He got very powerful very fast and I want to know why."

Sandy waved an arm to get their attention. He fidgeted nervously. A few sand signs flashed overhead. A snowflake, a horse, a ball… Tooth shook her head as they were unable to keep up. He sighed and tried again. The snowflake reappeared. They all said "Jack" at the same time. Sandy nodded. The horse came back.

"Nightmare?"

"Fearling?"

"Pitch?"

Sandy frowned and shook his head. After a moment, he got rid of the horse. Another series of images flashed by, but this one had a common theme. Spider, snake, fire, cliff edge, needle, rat…

"Fear?" Tooth guessed and Sandy nodded. He put his hands close together for a moment and then widened the gap. "A lot of fear?" Sandy nodded once more and then put up the snowflake again. "Jack has a lot of fear?" she said doubtfully. Despite her reservations against the idea, Sandy nodded firmly. "But he always seems so…"

"Stupidly brave," Bunny deadpanned.

"What does he fear?" North asked, frowning. Sandy shrugged and shook his head. "You do not know? Then how…?" Sandy gave them a look like it was obvious.

"He's young," Tooth said suddenly. Sandy nodded. "Think about his lifestyle. Too much of it is unstable. He might not fear normal things, but he has a lot of insecurities. Sandy, you think he has a lot of fear from that?" Sandy nodded grimly. "If Pitch has Jack and is using that against him, he could easily gather that much power. Jack's a winter spirit _and_ a Guardian. What exactly is he afraid of, Sandy?"

The conversation went on, but Bunny tuned it out. Jack's fears. As far as Bunny knew, the only thing the kid couldn't handle that was substantial was water. A frown formed on his face as he thought more about it. He gathered up the pieces of wood in his hands and tucked them into his sash. Sandy noticed and sent him a confused look.

"Bunny, where you going?" North asked as Bunny walked away from the conversation. The other two paused, only now noticing that Bunny was leaving. "Do we make such boring conversation?" He laughed at his own attempt to lighten the mood but only elicited a small smile from Bunny.

"Nah, mate, I just want ta make sure the Warren's still safe." He held up the pieces of wood. "I'm goin' ta drop this off in Burgess afterwards. If there's any chance Jack got away from Pitch an' is safe, that's where 'e'd go if 'e couldn't fly." North nodded in agreement and waved him off. Bunny tapped his foot against the ground and jumped inside the resulting hole.

-.-.-.-

He felt bad about misdirecting his friends, but it seemed like it would have been worse to give them false hope that he might know where Jack had been all this time. The tunnel dropped him off at the lake they had just left. There were still plenty of signs of the struggle, but he ignored all of it and walked to the edge of the lake. He set the broken pieces of wood down and looked at the rest of it. The lake water looked the same as it had been a few hours ago when they had left. Any cracks had refrozen, most likely from the temperature. Bunny would have liked to believe that was the only reason but he was beginning to think this was all going to blow up in his face if he confirmed what he now believed.

He reached out and thumped his foot against the ice as hard as he could. After a few blows, the ice cracked and broke away. With the bit of uneasiness in his stomach growing, he said loudly, "Jack, if you're anywhere nearby, jus'…show me."

He waited a few minutes, shifting back and forth impatiently. He felt like this was going nowhere, and that feeling increased the longer he stood there. This was the only lead at the moment, though, and he didn't want to just give up without even waiting it out.

Suddenly, as fast as a rubber band snapping back into place, the ice he had cracked refroze. Bunny jumped at the sound, even though he had been expecting it. A muffled thud came from below the ice, repeating again and again. He crouched down, eyes wide, watching a small white shape ram into the ice. A fist. Bunny put his paw over the ice, stunned he hadn't figured it out sooner and guilty he hadn't stopped to do anything. The fist stopped banging and flattened out, matching Bunny's gesture on the opposite side of the ice. Horror crept over his face. They had been running past him the entire time and hadn't had a clue that the answer was right beneath their feet.

After a moment, Bunny stepped back. The palm slammed against the ice in a desperate gesture. "Back up," Bunny said authoritatively. The hand pulled away and Bunny used his foot to kick a hole out of the ice again. He dropped down onto his knees and stuck his paw through, groping around for Jack. A hand clasped his. Bunny jerked in surprise as ice formed around his paw. He resisted the urge to let go and instead gripped Jack's hand tighter. He got into a crouch and pulled up as hard as he could, trying to pull the teenager out. A layer of ice formed around his paw as soon as Jack's fingers were about to break the surface. Bunny growled and yanked harder, trying to get him out.

Nothing happened. The ice creaked a bit, but refroze as soon as Jack got any closer. Bunny made a frustrated noise and let go of Jack's hand. The teenager tried to grab his paw but Bunny pulled it out of the ice before he could, yanking it fast and hard to be able to break the surface. It iced over within a few seconds as Jack got close to it.

"Hang on for a minute," he said, putting his hand against the ice again. Jack's hand appeared on the other side, as if trying to push through the solid water for some small degree of contact. "I'll be right back, I swear. I'll get ya out 'a there."

He stood up and opened a tunnel, leaving his anxious friend behind.

-.-.-.-

Bunny had left.

If he had given up so easily, Jack would probably remain down here for a long time. The thought made him slam his hand against the ice again in frustration. More ice separated him from the outside world once again, a reminder that he was never going to get out. After all, no one else was going to help him. There wasn't anything they could do if the Guardian of _Hope_ had abandoned him.

Why else would Bunny have left? While he wouldn't have picked Bunny as his ideal savior and it would have been certainly been embarrassing later, any sort of rescue would have been welcome as opposed to this life. The brief contact with another living person had been so tantalizingly bittersweet, seeing someone again after so long but realizing it was for naught and that they couldn't help. He was going to be alone for the rest of a very long life.

-.-.-.-

Bunny's foot slammed down on the ice. A moment later, he jumped into the cold water headfirst. Jack's eyes widened and he tried to warn him off, to tell him the water was too cold. A few trails of ice formed in the water around him from the small motions he made. Bunny ignored his gestures, closing the distance between the two and dragging something through the water after him. He pulled it up and reached out with a part of it wrapped around his hand. Jack realized it was a…blanket?

Bunny, determined as ever, brushed off Jack's last-ditch attempts to keep him from staying underwater any longer. He spread the blanket out in the water and then pushed it towards Jack. As quickly as he could, he swam around behind Jack and pulled it towards him, wrapping Jack in it. The spirit would have protested further except that any action at this point would have resulted in Bunny being frozen. Bunny ignored his look, grabbing edges of the blanket and tugging it around Jack. He ducked down for a second, bringing the blanket up from under his feet. Jack twitched slightly to try and untangle his legs but the rabbit gave him a look and Jack stilled.

After pulling hard on the blanket a few more times until Jack was almost entirely covered, Bunny pulled a final flap over Jack's head and grabbed the entire blanket-and-Jack bundle in his arms. Jack didn't move, remaining as still as possible. The blanket, soggy and wet as it was, seemed like one of the best things he had ever felt. It had been years since he had felt anything but the plants at the bottom of the lake and the water. Bunny held on tightly to the bundle and kicked forward with his legs, swimming to the surface. Without pausing, he threw himself and Jack out of the lake's murky depths.

Jack tensed in his arms, waiting for a crack as he froze the surface once more. To his surprise, he felt himself land on Bunny, who hit the ground on his back. Jack refrained from moving but felt Bunny stand hurriedly, pulling Jack with him. He dropped down to his knees a few meters away from the lake and set Jack down gently. Bunny started tearing away the blanket from him, uncovering the winter spirit and releasing him from the confines of the wet fabric. Jack barely moved, eyes wide and unmoving. Bunny's brow furrowed in worry.

"Jack? Jack, can ya hear me? Yer outta the water." He shook his shoulder, trying to get his attention.

Jack shifted, wobbly arms moving to push himself up. His chest moved like he was inhaling to respond, but stopped suddenly. His breath caught in his throat and he fell to the side, all of his stomach muscles and his diaphragm contracting. Everything that had been in his digestive system before being trapped came up, frozen solid. Bits of something small and solid from his lungs came out with it. He heaved repeatedly, crying from the effort of it. Bunny rubbed his back, not entirely sure what he should be doing. Jack started hacking hoarsely, bits of blood dripping from his mouth.

"Stop coughin'," Bunny ordered. Jack stopped, more out of surprise than anything else. He looked up at Bunny in confusion. "It sounds like ya've got ice in yer lungs. That's goin' ta rip yer throat to shreds as it comes up." He nodded at the blood on the ground. "It already is. I know it's goin ta hurt, but just let it stay there for now. I'm sorry, there's not much more we can do until it melts. It'll be like havin' one 'a the worst cases 'a pneumonia ever."

Jack nodded, biting his lip. He tried to breathe deeply a few times, trying his best to avoid coughing. Bunny started rubbing his back again, staying silent. He wanted to go get the rest of the Guardians, but leaving Jack on his own didn't seem like the best idea and the kid needed a lot of medical attention. They couldn't go to the North Pole. It was cold and wouldn't help melt the ice in his lungs at all. The Warren was warm enough that it would do just that. He could go get the rest of them as soon as he had Jack settled.

With that in mind, he stood up to make a tunnel. Jack lunged out, grabbing hold of his leg before he could. A sound made its way past his throat, hoarse and unintelligible as a word. His lips were saying, "No!" and that was the only reason Bunny knew what he had been meaning to get across.

Bunny knelt down beside him. "It's okay," he started but Jack was shaking his head.

The winter spirit swallowed a few times before trying to speak again. His hand was still gripping Bunny's leg. His lips moved frantically. "Please, I… I can't… Alone…"

Bunny shook his head. "Yer comin' wi' me. We're goin' ta the Warren."

Jack nodded in relief, relaxing his grip. Bunny gently reached over and pulled his opposite side closer, lightly knocking Jack into Bunny's lap. With the teenager flipped, he was able to get an arm under Jack's knee and another one around his back. He lifted him easily and stood up. Just as he was about to tap the ground, the four pieces of Jack's staff caught his eye. He moved over and tapped the ground there instead. The staff fell through and Bunny jumped in after.

He landed as gently as he could but Jack still flinched, curling up further. Bunny crouched and tried to set the teenager down. Jack wrapped his fingers through Bunny's fur and held on tightly. Bunny blinked in surprise and tilted his head, trying to see Jack's expression. The winter spirit turned away, burying his face in Bunny's chest. Stunned, Bunny sat back against the rock wall of the Warren with Jack in his arms. For him to respond this way, the damage that had been done to him must have cut very deeply.

"What happened?" Bunny murmured.

Jack tried to take several breaths to speak, but the air wouldn't go into his lungs like it should have. He gave up and mouthed the words instead. "Animal trap. I was surprised…dropped the staff as I went under…" His shoulders tensed and several of his limbs started twitching in a panicked gesture. Bunny rubbed his back a few times, trying to soothe him. "How…? How long…?"

"Almost two years," Bunny said hesitantly. A sob broke free from Jack. He cried openly, entire body shuddering as he curled up further. "I'm so, so sorry. I didn't know. I woulda… I woulda come immediately if I had known where ya were…"

Jack shook his head and whimpered, sobbing harder. Bunny wasn't sure what that meant, but his ears dipped in guilt. If Jack hadn't been a Guardian, if Pitch had never tried to take back over… How long would he have been under the ice? Would Jack have ever gotten out?

"Okay, Jack," he said softly. "You're goin' ta have ta stay here fer a while. The heat is goin' ta have ta warm the ice in yer lungs up. Sorry, but I don't trust havin' ya anywhere that's not one 'a our 'omes, an' mine's the warmest. It won't take more'n a few days, I think." He rubbed his nose against the side of Jack's head.

"Wait…" Jack ducked his head back down before he finished his thought.

"Yeah, I know it's not fair, but yer goin' ta have ta."

He shook his head.

"I know ya don't want ta, but it's really fer the best."

Jack repeated himself, sobs slowing down as he raised his head. "Please don't go."

Bunny paused for a second, not even able to form words. There were things he had never believed would happen, that he never even considered they would change. Jack's stability as a loner was one of those things. His tendency of fight or flight, standing on his own, and always, _always_, dealing with problems by himself were unwavering.

"Jack," he said awkwardly, "I know I'm not…the first one ya'd turn ta if ya were in trouble. I can go get one 'a the others."

Jack shook his head, acting much like a young child. He hiccupped, sniffling to try and suppress his tears. He scrubbed a hand across his face.

"Really, it won't even take ten seconds. I'll be back b'fore ya even know I was gone."

"No others-" He broke off as something cracked in his lungs. He winced, breathing deeply to try to stop it from causing him more pain. Bunny held him tighter, breath ruffling his hair. Another sob broke past Jack's barriers and he shuddered, mouth clamped closed to muffle the sound. "I can't…" he said, crying hard again.

"It's alright," Bunny murmured. He guessed that Jack felt embarrassed and didn't want anyone else to see him like this. "I'll tell 'em later." He nuzzled the side of his head again. Jack took a deep breath, controlling some of the tears. "They were in the middle 'a war plans, last I saw. All ready to storm Pitch's lair an' raid the place ta get ya back."

Jack smiled through his pain. Bunny nudged him again and the smile got wider. Bunny smirked and batted him with one of his ears. Jack laughed, butting his head against Bunny's chest in retribution. Bunny whacked him with his own head, which was much larger than Jack's. Jack tried to bite back a giggle. Bunny smiled and reached out to wipe away Jack's tears.

"Cryin' doesn't suit ya."

Jack remained silent but rubbed his head once more against Bunny's shoulder. The thanks went unsaid, but it wasn't hard to hear.

Bunny sighed, letting some of the stress fade away. "I'm sorry this happened ta ya. D'ya want to just rest right now?"

Jack shook his head firmly. "Two years of sitting still," he mouthed.

Bunny nodded in understanding. "Let's get ya cleaned up, then. You're a mess. The others won't even recognize ya."

Jack started to stand up. Bunny grabbed his arm and helped him. The rabbit led the way across the Warren to a small pool of clear water. Jack tensed up as he saw the liquid and turned away immediately. Bunny pulled him down where was right there. Jack looked pointedly away from the water while Bunny grabbed a cloth by the side of the pool and got it wet. He wrung it out, then reached over and started to wipe away the dried dirty lake water. Jack winced and closed his eyes against the feel of water. Bunny ran a comforting hand through his hair.

"You'll be alright," he said, calming down the spirit further. Jack shook his head, but it was just to shake off the cloth.

"I didn't think anyone was coming," Jack said soundlessly. He smiled at Bunny weakly.

The wet cloth whacked him in the back of the head. "Didn't I say somethin' about the cryin'? Don't start preppin' for a cryin' session," he scolded. "If ya ever get inta trouble again, ya better come straight here. I'll help ya sort it out."

Jack rubbed his head. "Sorry, I'm not always a crying mess."

"Ya just drowned fer two years straight. Ya got the right to be a cryin' mess."

Jack frowned suddenly, starting to stand. His breath caught in his throat and he hissed, fighting against a cough. Bunny stood up, dropping the cloth. "My staff…"

"I dropped it by the tunnel we came in through. It's in four pieces, but…"

Jack waved that off. "I can fix it."

Bunny paused and then picked up the cloth again. "Let's finish cleanin' ya up, then. Sit."

"Wait, but-"

"Jus' get it over wi'."

Jack hesitantly sat back down. Bunny went back to wiping all the grime off. To Jack's embarrassment, he ended up lying naked on the rocks by the pool while the stone golems washed his clothes and so Bunny could clean off the areas underneath the clothes. Jack did, however, draw the line at a certain point and cleaned the rest of himself off. Bunny failed to see where his embarrassment was coming from, muttering about the ridiculousness of humans and their clothes. Jack swallowed down a grin.

He was definitely not grinning, though, when Bunny informed him he was on bed rest. He protested for the next hour, but Bunny threatened him multiple times to the point where Jack just gave up and sulked. His clothes were returned around that time, improving his mood slightly. He fixed his staff and promptly covered the entire Warren in a light dusting of snow. It was Jack's turn to smirk while Bunny glowered at him. While it had been a result of power build up and a total accident, it was still funny, even more so because Bunny couldn't yell at him for it when he hadn't been able to use his powers to do anything but freeze himself for two years.

Despite his attempts at acting like everything was fine, he went to sleep only a few hours after that. He curled up on a pile of moss in the middle of a conversation while Bunny's back was turned and was asleep by the time Bunny glanced over to see why he wasn't answering.

He sat by the sleeping boy, patiently letting him catch up on his sleep. The ice he had heard lodged in Jack's lungs was probably filling it up to the point that he couldn't get out enough breath to speak. It had probably damaged his respiratory system as well. There was no way it couldn't have. The water was just going to have to melt and come out on its own. Hopefully, when Jack's emotions and fears weren't running rampant and there was a way to control his power, he wouldn't have trouble coughing up the water as it melted. At least, Bunny hoped so. The ice could also melt and Jack might _not_ be able to cough it up, which would mean he would essentially be drowning all the time. Bunny assumed he couldn't die from something like that, considering where he'd been the last two years, but there wasn't any need to test that theory.

It occurred to him with a jolt that he had left the Pole hours ago, told them he was going to come right back, and hadn't been seen since. They might want an update on what exactly he was doing, wouldn't they?

Bunny looked at Jack uncertainly. He didn't want to just leave the boy here and go get the Guardians, but he couldn't bring the Guardians here when Jack didn't want to see them. With a sigh, he reached over and gently shook Jack's shoulder. "Jack."

His eyes blinked open and he looked around, clearly having not expected to fall asleep. He pushed himself up on one hand into a sitting position. After a moment, he dipped his head and his shoulders heaved for a moment in a controlled manner. Water droplets splattered onto the ground. Bunny smiled.

"That's a good sign," he said. "Look, I kinda left the others an' didn't really tell 'em where I was goin' so they might be a bit concerned right now." Jack smirked. "Mind if I…?" Jack shook his head and gestured with one hand for him to do what he needed to do. "They're goin' ta want ta see ya."

Jack barely hesitated before nodding. He was certainly looking better than he had before.

"I'll go bring 'em over." Bunny got to his feet. Jack didn't move, but his gaze flickered up to follow him. Bunny paused for a moment, seeing a blankness in Jack's expression that didn't belong there. He was trying to hide something.

Of course he was still hurt on the inside, and not just physically. He was probably too scared to be alright for a long time, if he would ever be the same again. In all his years, he had never had anyone to be with when he suffered the aftershocks of shocks of something happening to him. Now had to have been the worst thing to occur and he finally had a family. Bunny couldn't believe that anything worse could have happened to Jack after all of this.

Jack hadn't even remembered his family for a long time. It wasn't until he saw his memories again that he knew what he had forgotten. His pain was not something Bunny would take lightly or would be quick to underestimate, not when his past troubles were combined with his present ones. A family could have been all that was needed to keep Jack out of this mess in the first place. A family wouldn't have waited years before going out to look for him. A family wouldn't have been unobservant enough to not realize their youngest member was in danger. A family would have kept Jack close, not close enough to be oppressive but close enough to let him know he was actually wanted.

Did Jack know that? Why would he? They had only dragged him out of his comfort zone in the middle of winter because someone told them to.

Bunny crouched down by Jack again and hugged him. Jack tensed for a moment before relaxing against his fur. "I'm proud 'a ya, ya know that?" he said quietly. Jack's arms wrapped around him tightly. "Really, truly, proud. An' I'm not goin' ta let anythin' happen ta ya again."

Jack raised his head and smiled at him.

It was going to be alright.

-.-.-.-

**North Pole**

**Two months later**

North walked beside Tooth as they went to the Globe Room. She was peering over the edge of the railing as she hovered, curious as to what was going on below. There was order to the chaos, of course, but the only ones who could tell the difference between organization and random clutter were the people who worked there. It was always different, depending on when someone visited. Something new happened every day at the workshop.

Now what made it different was the lack of undivided attention. All of the yetis and many of the elves were sparing several glances a minute to look up and see if they could spot something. They had been repeatedly disappointed by not seeing anything. That didn't stop them from routinely doing it, hearts too big to do anything less.

Tooth glanced at North."They're looking for Jack?"

"He should be here soon…" North said uncertainly. "We will send Bunny to get him if he does not show up in hour."

Tooth nodded, sighing. "It's not right for a boy his age to be living on his own."

North laughed. "Tooth, he is older than any mortal adult! How old must he be for him to not be a 'boy'?"

Tooth gave him a look. "You don't give presents to adults but you always give one to Jack. You're trying to tell me that _you_ don't consider him a boy?"

"Ah…am making up for lost time."

"I think you made it up three years ago with the amount of presents, including any that were less than spectacular from when he was mortal! Don't tell me that's the only reason why!"

"Jack is special case!"

"On your list or in age?" She smiled sadly. "We all think of him as a teenager, North. I know he probably doesn't want us to think of him as needing our help, but we all do it anyway. We're kind of his surrogate family now and we plan to stay that way. It's alright for us to take preference of one child over all the rest in this case. He's _ours_."

"Is it also alright for us to leave child under frozen water for years?" North asked quietly. "Or is it just an exception for this one child to never pay him any attention when he needs it?"

There was a pause before her response came. "That's not what happened, North, and you know it."

"Is how all of us feel."

"I know," she said softly. "We'll make up for it." A few moments passed. "What's up with Bunny?" she asked suddenly, turning the conversation in another direction. "I understand he's trying to keep Jack safe, but I thought he was going to cause one of us damage when we all wanted to go back with him to the Warren. Nothing could be so bad that Bunny would be that protective…" She trailed off like she was thinking something but didn't want to say it out loud.

North said it for her. "…over Jack?"

She grimaced and nodded.

"Something happened to them, that is for sure." He smiled. "It may be for best that something happened to bring the two together. They were too lonely, lost in their own worlds."

Tooth scoffed. "I don't think this is for the best, no matter what the result was."

Something crashed on the level above them. They both stopped and looked up in confusion. A strong breeze swept through, rattling windows and anyone walking by. The tinkering of the yetis stopped as they listened carefully. Laughter filled the workshop as someone's irritable mutterings became audible. Something else hit the ground and an apology was shouted out before the laughing child continued on his way.

"Get back here!"

"Make me!"

"Don't tempt me! Come on, you're goin' ta wreck somethin' else!"

"Hey, you hit the yeti, not me, and you didn't even say sorry!"

"_You _knocked him off course, ya little runt!"

"Sure, we can go with – ack, sorry, Sandy, didn't see you there – that. I'm positive the truth is more like your coordination isn't that good and you just ran into the poor guy-"

"Ya were better off when the ice hadn't melted in yer lungs!"

"You were better off not being a stuck up moron all the time!"

"You were-"

North and Tooth exchanged looks. Never let it be said that Jack wasn't a fast healer.

-.-.-.-.-

a/n: This chapter was called "Alone" because…uh…HE WAS ALONE. Duh. It's something that is an everyday thing to him, so much so that he probably doesn't even think about it that much anymore, but when it suddenly becomes _that_ drastic…he's going to be upset. Why did he not go totally bonkers, you ask? Because he's been unseen and unheard for three hundred damn years, that's why. As Bunny said in the interlude, he knows how to entertain himself. Did I write this phase just to show that? …Sure. Did I write this phase just to have that fluff brother moment at the end? Of course not! (YES!)

Yep, this is over. Sorry. It was a lot of fun to write because I didn't have to write it in order _at all_. Seriously. I wrote part of this one, phase one, phase four, interlude, the rest of this one (didn't go to sleep to finish it, mind you), phase three, and then phase two. Definitely not in order. Loads of fun to write it like that. I'd love to do it again but I don't have another plot like this where I don't have to be really strict about what goes where and chapter length.


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